Logistics Cluster and WFP logistics augmentation in support of the Government of DRC and the Humanitarian Community

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is one of the most complex humanitarian crises in the world due to numerous factors: continued armed conflicts with a multitude of simultaneous emergencies; high vulnerability of the population combined with limited state capacity to meet the needs of affected people; and challenging humanitarian accesses due to poor infrastructure and insecurity.

The 2016 Humanitarian Response Plan and Needs Overview estimates that 7.5 million people are in need of some form of humanitarian assistance, an increase from 7 million the previous year. WFP, as the global lead agency of the Logistics Cluster, has been working with the Government of DRC and the humanitarian community to identify logistics bottlenecks, propose mitigating activities for overcoming gaps, and provide support to the Government and humanitarian community to ensure an efficient and effective logistics response.

Following the outbreak of unrest in Kasai in August 2016, incoming aid for the region and other provinces affected by the ongoing conflict has been putting an additional strain on the existing logistics capacity of humanitarian actors. Due to the current response operations, there has been a significant increase in requirements for commodity storage at various levels of the supply chain. In certain areas, insecurity is restricting the number of transporters willing to travel to certain locations, obstructing ongoing deliveries and increasing transportation costs for transporters that will deliver in areas of insecurity. 

This SO is an essential means of supporting the humanitarian response by strengthening mobile logistics capacity and logistics technical support among key actors.  SO 201075 will facilitate Logistics Cluster activities by:

• Seconding logistics experts to assist the Government (the National Civil Protection Department and the Ministry of Social, Humanitarian Affairs and Solidarity) and humanitarian actors in expanding key responses;
• Augmenting logistics capacities through free-to-user provision of common storage facilities and road transportation provided in key locations based on needs

This Special Operation (SO) 201075 succeeds SO 200747 (December 2014 - June 2017) and will run for six months (July – December 2017).