Minova, South Kivu – Access to medical care in South Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is deteriorating dangerously, against a backdrop of prolonged conflict and the gradual withdrawal of international healthcare organisations. In Minova, in the territory of Kalehe, the cessation of World Bank funding through the Multisectoral Nutrition and Health Project (PMNS) has had immediate consequences on access to vital care, particularly for pregnant women and newborns.

South Kivu: deprioritised despite immense needs

Despite the rapidly deteriorating situation in South Kivu, the province remains particularly neglected. Shortages of medicines, vaccines, and nutrition supplies now affect the majority of the province’s health zones. In 2025, measles vaccines were unavailable for several months, despite active outbreaks in 24 of the 34 health zones.

“National health programmes to combat malaria, tuberculosis, HIV, malnutrition, and low immunisation are no longer functioning effectively in many areas due to security and logistical constraints, as well as funding withdrawals,” explains Issa Moussa, Médecins Sans Frontières’ (MSF’s) head of mission in South Kivu. “General health centres, often without paid staff or essential medicines, cannot meet actual needs.”

Obstetric and neonatal care now out of reach in Minova

The Minova health zone illustrates the alarming reality of this crisis. Since the World Bank halted funding through the PMNS and some partners ended their support in early 2026, Minova General Reference hospital introduced new fees for obstetric and neonatal care, including up to US$100 for a caesarean section and US$50 for the care of a premature newborn.

The consequences are immediate and deeply concerning. Some women, unable to pay, remain hospitalised for several days or weeks until they are able to settle their bills, while others simply forgo care, opting instead for high-risk home births. As soon as World Bank support ended, and according to hospital data, maternity ward visits between January and February 2026 dropped by nearly 34 per cent compared to 2025.  

“We are desperate, worried about our babies and our other children,” says a patient who was hospitalised in Minova General Reference in January 2026. “Some of us have been hospitalised for three days, others for more than two weeks. We have no hope left. I simply cannot pay.”

Pressure on the few free facilities

In the highlands, Numbi hospital is supported by MSF and remains one of the few facilities offering free care. However, it is already operating well beyond capacity. In early 2026, the maternity ward bed occupancy rate exceeded 217 per cent, compared to 95 per cent in October 2025, which means women are sharing beds.

As a result, the hospital cannot absorb an additional influx of patients from coastal areas, where pregnant women sometimes walk for several hours despite insecurity, due to a lack of financial means.

The deterioration of the healthcare system is occurring against a backdrop of high epidemic risks, particularly of measles, cholera, and mpox, persistent malnutrition, particularly in the highlands, and extremely concerning levels of sexual violence.

An urgent call to action

MSF, which has been present in the area since early 2024, had initially planned a gradual withdrawal from the Minova coastal corridor in early 2026, in order to further concentrate our activities in the Numbi highlands, where humanitarian needs are particularly high. Faced with the worsening situation though, we have had to maintain our support for Minova General Reference to prevent a sudden disruption in care, notably by resuming maternity and neonatal care activities in March 2026. During the first month of support, MSF assisted with 107 deliveries, including 48 caesarean sections, and admitted 41 babies to the neonatal unit.

“However, we cannot permanently replace the health authorities or the humanitarian and development partners who are gradually withdrawing,” says Moussa. “Without operational support and rapid funding, essential health services risk collapsing, with direct consequences for maternal and infant mortality in South Kivu.”

Urgent action is essential. MSF calls on:

• Donor organisations to reconsider their financial withdrawal from the health sector in South Kivu in order to ensure access to, and the continuity of, general and specialist healthcare.
• Humanitarian and health organisations to strengthen their presence and coordination, particularly in Minova.
• Authorities and parties to the conflict to guarantee safe and unimpeded humanitarian access; furthermore, the parties to the conflict must depoliticise access to healthcare and ensure the continuity of national health programmes, including for HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, vaccination and nutrition, in eastern DRC.
• The entire humanitarian community to place South Kivu at the centre of the response to the crisis in eastern DRC.