Abducted children and youth in Lord’s Resistance Army in Northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC): mechanisms of indoctrination and control

Abstract:For several years, local radio stations in Uganda have broadcast “come home” messages that encourage the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army to demobilize. Since the rebels began carrying out attacks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Central African Republic, several international actors have introduced the same messages to these regions. This new effort has internationalized radio programming, benefited local radio stations, provided new forms of messaging, and functioned in collaboration with military actors. This article provides an overview of how “come home” messaging functions in different contexts, examines the effects of these actions, and calls for research into an important shift in military–humanitarian relations.

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Operation “Artemis”: The First Autonomous EU-led Operation

Academic and Applied Research in Military and Public ◽

10.32565/aarms.2015.1.11 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

pp. 121-132

Author(s):

János Tomolya

Keyword(s):

United Nations ◽

Democratic Republic ◽

Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽

European Security ◽

Republic Of Congo ◽

Autonomous Operation ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

Operational Constraints ◽

And Control ◽

The Eu

In June 2003, the EU launched Operation “Artemis”, its first military mission outside Europe and independent of NATO, to the Democratic Republic of Congo. While it ultimately received an EU badge, its origin, command and control were French. The objective of Operation “Artemis” was to contribute to the stabilisation of the security conditions in Bunia, capital of Ituri, to improve the humanitarian situation, and to ensure the protection of displaced persons in the refugee camps in Bunia. Its mandate was to provide a short-term interim force for three months until the transition to the reinforced United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC – Mission de l’Organisation des Nations Unies en République Démocratique du Congo; English: United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo). Although the EU can be said to have passed the first “test” of the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) mechanisms for the conduct of an autonomous operation, this test was a limited one. Operational constraints were caused by inadequate strategic lift capabilities and the lack of a strategic reserve.

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May Measurement Month 2019: an analysis of blood pressure screening results from the Democratic Republic of the Congo

European Heart Journal Supplements ◽

10.1093/eurheartj/suab050 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 23 (Supplement_B) ◽

pp. B52-B54

Author(s):

Jean-René M’Buyamba-Kabangu ◽

Fortunat K Katamba ◽

Mireille L Ntambwe ◽

Georges N Ngoyi ◽

Trésor M Tshiswaka ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Blood Pressure ◽

Ad Hoc ◽

Democratic Republic ◽

High Rate ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

Low Levels ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

And Control

Abstract Hypertension, the foremost cause of global morbi-mortality, is linked with a high mortality from numerous cardiovascular endpoints. The May Measurement Month (MMM) campaign is an annual initiative of the International Society of Hypertension (ISH) to collect information on blood pressure (BP) and other risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in adults. MMM2019 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was an opportunistic cross-sectional survey of volunteers aged ≥18 years that took place in Kinshasa and Mbuji-Mayi after the training of observers to familiarize with the ISH ad hoc methods. We screened 29 857 individuals (mean age: 40 years; 40% female). Hypertension was present in 7624 (25.5%) individuals. Of them, 2520 (33.1%) were aware, 1768 (23.2%) on treatment with 910 (51.5%) controlled BP (systolic BP <140 mmHg and/or diastolic BP <90 mmHg). Of all hypertensives screened, 11.9% had controlled BP. Of all respondents, 16.7% had participated in MMM18 and 60.5% did not have their BP verified during the last year. Fasting, pregnancy, and underweight status were linked with lower BP levels whilst smoking, drinking, antihypertensive medication, previous stroke, diabetes as well as being overweight/obese were associated with higher BP levels. Our results reflect the high rate of hypertension in the DRC with low levels of awareness, treatment, and control. A nationally representative sample is required to establish the nationwide hypertension prevalence.

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A Snapshot of Poverty, Diseases and War – The Democratic Republic of the Congo

Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness ◽

10.1017/dmp.2021.227 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-11

Author(s):

Shibu Sasidharan ◽

Harpreet Singh Dhillon

Keyword(s):

Rift Valley Fever ◽

Democratic Republic ◽

Health Workers ◽

Health Issues ◽

Valley Fever ◽

Major Health ◽

Civil Unrest ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

And Control ◽

Perfect Storm

Abstract DRC’s fight with EVD was just settling when WHO declared CoVid-19 to be a PHEIC on Mar 12, 2020. DRC’s economic growth decelerated from its pre-COVID level of 4.4% in 2019, to an estimated 0.8% in 2020. This has caused concomitant setbacks in the treatment and control of major health issues like HIV, tuberculosis, measles, rift valley fever and malaria in the country. This coupled with civil unrest, other infectious diseases and risk to the safety of the health workers, this is a recipe for a 'perfect storm’ waiting to unfold.

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Enhancing Monitoring and Control of the Fall Armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) by Citizen Science.

Biodiversity Information Science and Standards ◽

10.3897/tdwgproceedings.1.20499 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 1 ◽

pp. e20499

Author(s):

Papy Miankeba

Keyword(s):

Citizen Science ◽

Spodoptera Frugiperda ◽

Democratic Republic ◽

Fall Armyworm ◽

Monitoring And Control ◽

Dr Congo ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

And Control

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Analysis of blood pressure and selected cardiovascular risk factors in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: the May Measurement Month 2018 results

European Heart Journal Supplements ◽

10.1093/eurheartj/suaa027 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (Supplement_H) ◽

pp. H50-H52

Author(s):

Nathan B Buila ◽

Georges N Ngoyi ◽

Pascal M Bayauli ◽

Fortunat K Katamba ◽

Yves N Lubenga ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Blood Pressure ◽

Antihypertensive Medication ◽

Democratic Republic ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Linear Regression Models ◽

High Prevalence ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

And Control ◽

Age And Sex

Abstract Hypertension (HT) is the largest contributor to cardiovascular disease mortality and is characterized by high prevalence and low awareness, treatment, and control rates in sub-Saharan Africa. May Measurement Month (MMM) is an international campaign intended to increase awareness of high blood pressure (BP) among the population and advocate for its importance to the health authorities. This study aimed to increase awareness of raised BP in a country where its nationwide prevalence is yet unestablished. Investigators trained and tested how to use the campaign materials, collected participants’ demographic data, lifestyle habits, and obtained from each one three BP measurements. Hypertension was defined as a BP ≥140/90 mmHg, or use of antihypertensive medication. Of the 18 719 screened (mean age 41 years; 61.4% men), 26.1% were found to be hypertensive of whom 46.3% were aware of their condition and 29.6% were taking antihypertensive medication. The control rate of HT was 43.0% in those on medication and 12.7% among all hypertensive respondents. Comorbidities found were—diabetes (3.3%), overweight/obesity (35.5%); and a previous stroke and a previous myocardial infarction were reported by 1.2% and 2.0%, respectively. Imputed age- and sex-standardized BP was higher in treated hypertensive individuals (135/85 mmHg) than those not treated (124/78 mmHg). Based on linear regression models adjusted for age and sex (and an interaction) and antihypertensive medication, stroke survivors, those who drank once or more per week (vs. never/rarely), and overweight/obese participants were associated with higher BP. MMM18 results in the Democratic Republic of the Congo corroborated the high prevalence of HT in Kinshasa screenees with low rates of treatment and control. Extension of the MMM campaign to other parts of the country is advisable.

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Ebola Outbreak in Kikwit, Democratic Republic of the Congo: Discovery and Control Measures

The Journal of Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1086/514302 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 179 (s1) ◽

pp. S259-S262 ◽

Cited By ~ 68

Author(s):

J. J. Muyembe‐Tamfum ◽

M. Kipasa ◽

C. Kiyungu ◽

R. Colebunders

Keyword(s):

Democratic Republic ◽

Control Measures ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

And Control

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A tale of two clades: monkeypox viruses

Journal of General Virology ◽

10.1099/vir.0.81215-0 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 86 (10) ◽

pp. 2661-2672 ◽

Cited By ~ 162

Author(s):

Anna M. Likos ◽

Scott A. Sammons ◽

Victoria A. Olson ◽

A. Michael Frace ◽

Yu Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Democratic Republic ◽

Clinical Laboratory ◽

West African ◽

Open Reading Frames ◽

Congo Basin ◽

The Usa ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

Using Data ◽

And Control ◽

Reading Frames

Human monkeypox was first recognized outside Africa in 2003 during an outbreak in the USA that was traced to imported monkeypox virus (MPXV)-infected West African rodents. Unlike the smallpox-like disease described in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC; a Congo Basin country), disease in the USA appeared milder. Here, analyses compared clinical, laboratory and epidemiological features of confirmed human monkeypox case-patients, using data from outbreaks in the USA and the Congo Basin, and the results suggested that human disease pathogenicity was associated with the viral strain. Genomic sequencing of USA, Western and Central African MPXV isolates confirmed the existence of two MPXV clades. A comparison of open reading frames between MPXV clades permitted prediction of viral proteins that could cause the observed differences in human pathogenicity between these two clades. Understanding the molecular pathogenesis and clinical and epidemiological properties of MPXV can improve monkeypox prevention and control.

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The exacerbation of Ebola outbreaks by conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1913980116 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 116 (48) ◽

pp. 24366-24372 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Chad R. Wells ◽

Abhishek Pandey ◽

Martial L. Ndeffo Mbah ◽

Bernard-A. Gaüzère ◽

Denis Malvy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Disease Transmission ◽

Democratic Republic ◽

Population Level ◽

Model Framework ◽

Public Health Response ◽

Local Conditions ◽

Health Response ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

And Control ◽

The Impact

The interplay between civil unrest and disease transmission is not well understood. Violence targeting healthcare workers and Ebola treatment centers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been thwarting the case isolation, treatment, and vaccination efforts. The extent to which conflict impedes public health response and contributes to incidence has not previously been evaluated. We construct a timeline of conflict events throughout the course of the epidemic and provide an ethnographic appraisal of the local conditions that preceded and followed conflict events. Informed by temporal incidence and conflict data as well as the ethnographic evidence, we developed a model of Ebola transmission and control to assess the impact of conflict on the epidemic in the eastern DRC from April 30, 2018, to June 23, 2019. We found that both the rapidity of case isolation and the population-level effectiveness of vaccination varied notably as a result of preceding unrest and subsequent impact of conflict events. Furthermore, conflict events were found to reverse an otherwise declining phase of the epidemic trajectory. Our model framework can be extended to other infectious diseases in the same and other regions of the world experiencing conflict and violence.

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The impact ofInfection Prevention and control (IPC) bundle implementationon IPC compliance during the Ebola virus outbreak in Mbandaka/Democratic Republic of the Congo: a before and after design

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2019-029717 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (9) ◽

pp. e029717 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Kevin Ousman ◽

Landry Kabego ◽

Ambrose Talisuna ◽

Janet Diaz ◽

John Mbuyi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Prevention And Control ◽

Ebola Virus ◽

Democratic Republic ◽

P Value ◽

Before And After ◽

Republic Of The Congo ◽

The Mean ◽

And Control ◽

The Impact

ObjectivesTo assess the impact of refresher training of healthcare workers (HCWs) in infection prevention and control (IPC), ensuring consistent adequate supplies and availability of IPC kits and carrying out weekly monitoring of IPC performance in healthcare facilities (HCFs)DesignThis was a before and after comparison studySettingsThis study was conducted from June to July 2018 during an Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in Equateur Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).Participants48 HCFsInterventionsHCWs capacity building in basic IPC, IPC kit donation and IPC mentoring.Primary outcome measuresIPC scoreResults48 HCFs were evaluated and 878 HCWs were trained, of whom 437 were women and 441 were men. The mean IPC score at baseline was modestly higher in hospitals (8%) compared with medical centres (4%) and health centres (4%), respectively. The mean IPC score at follow-up significantly increased to 50% in hospitals, 39% in medical centres and 36% in health centres (p value<0.001). The aggregate mean IPC score at baseline for all HCFs, combined was 4.41% and at follow-up it was 39.51% with a mean difference of 35.08% (p-value<0.001).ConclusionsImplementation of HCW capacity building in IPC, IPC kit donation to HCF and mentoring in IPC improved IPC compliance during the ninth EVD outbreak in the DRC.

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