Children in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s eastern region province of North Kivu have called for the restoration of peace and security in this part of the country.
The DRC’s eastern region has been ravaged by war perpetrated by the M23 fighters and other rebel groups for almost 30 years causing thousands of civilians to live in distress as they flee their homes.
On Friday, children in the province celebrated “African Child Day” where they expressed having grown fed up with the continued precarious conditions in the province.
“Since the war started, we have led a difficult life. First, we fled with our parents. Arriving here in Goma, it’s yet another misery. We, children, are tired of war and want peace to return to our respective environments” said one of the displaced children living in the Bulengo site.
And another to call:
“I come from Rutshuru and I ask that the war end or that schools be built to allow us to study in good conditions.”
Meanwhile, head of UNICEF office in Goma Madi Foura Sassou also in attendance, indicated that the war penalizes a large part of the population, including children.
Sassou explained that this situation has affected the children’s education having been forced to flee the fighting.
He also announced that UNICEF had set up listening clubs in the occupied areas, where children take classes.
More than 80,000 other children are also being cared for in various displaced sites, he said, deploring at the same time that many other children still do not have access to education.
