USAID cancelled rape survivor kits for Congo as conflict erupted
🇺🇸 USAID Cancels Rape Survivor Kits for Congo Amid Escalating Conflict
Reported by Reuters – July 1, 2025
🔍 What happened?
- In early 2025, as violence intensified in eastern DR Congo, the U.S. administration under President Trump suspended a $100,000 contract with USAID to supply approximately 100,000 emergency post-rape kits to over 2,000 health facilities. (reuters.com)
- The pause followed a 90-day freeze on foreign aid, along with Elon Musk’s restructuring of USAID—ultimately shutting down the agency and abruptly cancelling the contract. (reuters.com)
🩺 Why these kits matter
- The kits contained essential items: antiretroviral drugs (to prevent HIV within 72 hours), antibiotics for STIs, emergency contraception, and testing materials. (reuters.com)
- With them gone, care workers say only 13% of rape survivors receive timely post-exposure HIV prevention—leaving thousands vulnerable to HIV, unwanted pregnancies, and unsafe abortions. (reuters.com)
📈 Context of rising sexual violence
- Since January, rebel attacks—particularly by the M23 rebels (allegedly backed by Rwanda)—have driven widespread sexual violence. UN figures cite 67,000 recorded rape cases, with many more unreported. (reuters.com)
- In regions like North and South Kivu, women face systemic rape, including children assaulted every 30 minutes during peak conflict periods, per UNICEF. (press.un.org)
🎙️ Voices from the ground
- A health worker in South Kivu stated:
“When you look into the eyes of a rape victim, you get the impression that her gaze is dead… telling them that you don’t have any medicine.” (reuters.com)
- CARE International’s Amadou Bocoum emphasized the urgent need:
“This kit is truly important to reassure the woman… she won’t get AIDS, that she won’t have an unwanted pregnancy…” (reuters.com)
🌍 Broader aid collapse
- CARE, AllAfrica, and other outlets confirm PEP kit shortages in Northern Kivu, describing the supply chain as “collapsed”, risking dire medical outcomes. (allafrica.com)
- Oxfam warns that aid cuts threaten the health and survival of up to one million people in eastern DRC—impacting water, sanitation, food, and medical care. (africa.oxfam.org)
🎯 What’s next?
- Aid agencies are appealing urgently for around $35 million to refill critical supplies left unsupported by the cancelled USAID contract. (reuters.com)
- The U.S. State Department claims it will continue broader life-saving efforts, though it has provided no replacement funding for these specific kits. (reuters.com)
