Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Brazzaville (Agenzia Fides) - Poverty is a phenomenon that also affects the Democratic Republic of Congo, in both cities and the countryside. According to the United Nations Development Programme, 42.3% of the 3.8 million Congolese live below the poverty line, and about 22% have never been to school, so is illiterate. To meet the nutritional needs of school-age children a food program has been introduced that provides the distribution of daily meals, increasing therefore school attendance. In the primary school Jean-Félix Tchicaya di Pointe Noire, the economic capital of Congo, the World Food Programme (FAO) distributes 756 meals per day, while in the rest of the country provides 70 000 meals to 188 schools. Thanks to this initiative, the children, who often have to travel several miles to reach schools, walking on an empty stomach, are returning to attend classes. In Lékoumou, in the southwest, the American IPHD NGO, International Partnership for Human Development, currently provides 10,000 meals in 48 schools in 4 districts. According to the IPHD, between 2011 and 2012, 25 thousand meals will be distributed. The situation unfortunately is not the same for everyone. Since last November, the primary school in Joseph Kéoua in Brazzaville does not benefit from the program due to lack of food. At the school, "Friendship" in Brazzaville, 1,200 children disappointed by the interruption of service, are slowly returning to school. According to official statistics, in 2010 school attendance was 114% and it is hoped that this year it can reach 117%. In 2007 it was only 92%. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 05/13/2011)
