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The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a country located in central Africa.
TheDemocratic Republic of Congo(DRC) has one of the highest incidences ofpoverty in the world. And unfortunately it is still going on. DRC is #1 out of 11 top poor countries in the world (2014) At a rate of 71.34, its incidence of poverty is “extremely high”, even in comparison with othercentral African countries. However, this poverty is not evenly distributed. TheIMF estimates that poverty is more prevalent inrural areas (75.72%) than inurban areas (61.49%), while the provinces ofÉquateur,Bandundu andSud-Kivu have a poverty incidence of over 85% compared toKinshasa’s 42%.[1]
The DRC’s high incidence of poverty is partly attributable to theethnic conflict that spilled over from neighboringRwanda and an ongoingcivil war between government troops and rebel groups in Eastern Congo. The sustained levels ofviolence have caused massive infrastructural damage,internal displacement, and loss of property and lives. In 2007, theInternational Rescue Committee estimated that 5.4 million people had died from the war and that another 1,250 continue to die each day fromwar-related causes.[2][3]
In order to reduce the levels of poverty in the country, the government embarked on IMF recommended reforms to improve itsmacroeconomic environment, initiate policies to supporteconomic growth as well as improve its provision of basicsocial services. While the results have been mixed, the IMF notes in its 2010 report that Congo’seconomic governance has improved, over 22,000 km of roads have been completed and “significant progress” have been made in increasingprimary school enrollment from 64.1% in 2004 to 84.3% in 2008 and reducinginfant mortality.[4]
Sexual violence has characterised much of the violence perpetuated in
Congo. Used as a tactic of war, the daily violations of women and children by armed groups have created a climate offear and a reputation for the DRC as world’s “worst place to be a woman or a child”.[5] Women from ages “six to eighty” have become victims and one statistic suggests that over 200,000 women may have been victimized over the past decade, while another notes that in some regions, as many as 40 women areraped every day.[6]
However, despite the massive scale ofviolence against women committed, the level of assistance that victims can expect in the form ofmedical care or post-traumatic counseling service is minimal[clarification needed] to the point of non-existence, especially if one considers that only three practicinggynecologists serveNorth Kivu, a province of over 800,000 people.[7] Most of the rape shelters in the DRC are operated by foreign or internationalnon-governmental organizations. But despite this intervention by the international community, supply has been insufficient to meet demand.[8]
In addition topsychological andphysical trauma, rape victims bear socio-economic costs. For instance, the families of raped women are only paid adowry price of two goats, if at all, as compared to the typical price of 20 goats. Consequently, raped women are often abandoned by their husbands whilst raped girls have difficulty marrying.[9] Thus, in the context of the DRC’spatriarchal society, where women are dependent on men – first their fathers and later husbands – for economic support, their status as rape victims inevitably affects their economic well-being.