IOM begins work this week in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on the emergency reopening of the Dungu-Duru-Bitima axis roadway in the country's Haut-Uélé, Orientale Province, previously abandoned due to disrepair and security concerns.

The emergency project seeks to reclaim the roadway and make it passable for humanitarian transport by March 2011.

The 125 km "axis" runs due north from the city of Dungu to the Sudanese border and is a key supply route for the Dungu territory and Haut-Uélé District in general. The number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) located along the road is estimated at 113,611 people, with a potential influx of between 15,000 and 45,000 Southern Sudanese to the region in coming months, according to UN humanitarian contingency plans.

Humanitarian transport of goods along the road was abandoned last year due to its poor condition, the risk of getting stuck en route and attacks by Lord's Resistance Army forces in the region. This effectively cut off part of the population from access to on-ground humanitarian services and care and makes the largely air supply of relief goods to Dungu extremely costly for humanitarian organizations.

The road building project which is funded by the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) is one of only three undertaken recently in the region.

IOM recently completed the rehabilitation of a 215 km crucial road between Dungu and Doruma, which lies close to the border with the Central African Republic.

The project will also support livelihoods in the region by hiring skilled and unskilled labourers through a cash-for-work programme to help with the rehabilitation of the road and infrastructure along its route.

Maintenance of the Dungu-Duru-Bitima roadway is problematic at the best of times due to the level of heavy transport and the rapid deterioration of the road surface. It is estimated that the rehabilitation project will render the route serviceable for a maximum period of 9-12 months after completion.

For more information contact:

Guillaume Lecoq
IOM Kinshasa
Tel: +243 81 741 5154
E-mail: glecoq@iom.int