(KPL/Prensa Latina)  Almost a quarter of the population of the Democratic Republic of Congo is suffering from critical levels of hunger or worse, warned a UN report today confirming the spread of food insecurity.

In a joint statement, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Program (WFP) estimated that around 25.6 million people in the country face this risk.

In such a fragile context, the cost of inaction is truly unthinkable, said Peter Musoko, director and representative of the WFP in the country.

“Together, we have to work with the Government and the humanitarian community to increase resources for this neglected crisis,” he said.

The agencies showed special concern for the eastern region, where decades of fighting keep civilians trapped in a cycle of violence.

Some 100 armed groups are involved in the fighting, including the M23 militia, which is vying for control of vast natural resources, threatening regional security.

More than 6.5 million people are displaced in vulnerable communities in North Kivu, Ituri and South Kivu provinces, according to the data.

Meanwhile, the Tanganyika region is suffering from the worst levels of food insecurity following intense flooding in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The latest report from the UN’s Integrated Food Security Phase Classification index estimates that almost all regions are affected by crisis levels of hunger – level three or higher out of a maximum of five.

Meanwhile, some 3.1 million displaced and returnees in the northeast are at level four, with extreme food shortages.

According to experts, this equates to excessive indicators of acute malnutrition and disease, along with an increasing risk of hunger-related death.

KPL