MCC Canada awarded $4.7 million grant for humanitarian assistance in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

June 2021 distribution of emergency relief items, including maize flour, beans, vegetable oil, salt, blankets, pots, plates and cups, to families in the Buhene and Bugeregere communities in Goma, Demo

Democratic Republic of the Congo — Apr 2025

Story by Jason Dueck
menu_book News
Food
April 10, 2025

Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Canada has been awarded a grant of $4.7 million (US$3.25 million) to support its ongoing emergency humanitarian response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

These funds come at a time of great need for those already vulnerable in the country. The conflict between the March 23 Movement (M23) and the Congolese army has escalated significantly in the last year, worsening the humanitarian crisis affecting approximately 11 million people in the North and South Kivu provinces. 

The grant comes from Global Affairs Canada and will specifically fund MCC’s efforts to provide locally purchased household and hygiene items as well as cash support to an estimated 9,000 people affected by conflict in areas surrounding Goma, DR Congo. 

The project also includes additional activities and training to mitigate increased risk and respond to sexual and gender-based violence against vulnerable women and girls. The project began in January 2025 and will run until December 2026.

“We’re very excited to have been awarded this grant,” says Annie Loewen, MCC interim disaster response director. “MCC has been working in DR Congo for 64 years, building relationships with local organizations, churches and governments. This grant will allow us to effectively continue the important work we’re doing and meet the needs of thousands of people who need support right now.”

MCC began working in western DR Congo in 1955. Over the past 64 years, it has partnered with more than a dozen local civil society organizations to respond to the changing needs and challenges the country has faced. MCC’s work in DR Congo has an annual budget of more than $4.3 million (US$3 million) in 2025, with nearly $10 million (US$6.9 million) spent in the last three years.

Top photo caption: The setup of a June 2021 distribution of emergency relief items, including maize flour, beans, vegetable oil, salt, blankets, pots, plates and cups, to families in the Buhene and Bugeregere communities in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, whose homes were destroyed by volcanic lava. (MCC photo/Mulanda Jimmy Juma (2021))