Urban environmental health pilot activities : evaluation of progress and lessons learned : USAID/Democratic Republic of Congo

Urban areas in the Democratic Republic of Congo are in a profound crisis as a result of rapid growth; anarchic, uncontrolled and unplanned settlement; and poor management of public affairs. The responsible authorities fail in their ability to deal with this crisis because of a shortage of equipment, resources, and the institutional structures required for any effective organizations. The degradation of the urban environment, decay of infrastructure, and negligence of the population has resulted in the return of water-borne diseases, particularly impacting children under the age of five. The numerous cases of typhoid fever, polio, dysentery, cholera and malaria registered in Kinshasa bear witness to the poor state of health in the population.

In response to this, USAID/DRC developed an Urban Environmental Health Program, consisting of both strategic planning and short term, results-oriented interventions.

Two of the projects were implemented in Kinshasa, and the third was implemented in Kananga, a city of 800,000 east of Kinshasa : 1) an environmental health pilot project in Kinshasa, reducing the incidence of diarrheal diseases through the elimination of the various disease vectors found in the environment; 2) a water supply and hygiene education project for Kananga, to reduce the incidence of morbidity and mortality due to water-borne diseases in the population, by increasing local capacity in water provision and management, promoting preventive health measures, and increasing access to potable water supplies; and 3) a water and sanitation project for the public markets of Kinshasa, to reduce public health hazards by improving sanitary conditions.