The reintegration of Congolese refugees in South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will not work unless greater investments in basic services, like education, health care and food security, are made soon. With increasing returns likely, due to political progress in the country or the pressure expected from both the Congolese and Tanzanian governments, there is a serious risk that the current capacity to support returning refugees will be overwhelmed and tensions will rise sharply. National authorities should start showing greater commitment in responding to returnees' needs. International agencies, and in particular the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), must increase their involvement and improve coordination and leadership of activities devoted to rebuilding recipient communities and restarting economic activities.

Refugees International visited the southern part of South Kivu along the axis between Uvira-Baraka-Fizi twice this year, and noticed that some of the shortcomings in assistance identified during our March 2006 visit had been overcome. Road rehabilitation has increased access, allowing humanitarian agencies to expand their operations and reach out to more communities. According to a humanitarian official, "Currently around 90% of the health posts are supported." Since June of this year the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has provided agricultural tools and seeds for return kits and supplied those who had returned earlier and did not receive those items. Confirming the greater and more efficient work of the agencies, a recent nutrition survey found no signs of malnutrition in the area, with the exception of the Ruzizi Plain.

Refugee returns during this past year have been well below expectations, reaching around 14,700 people, less than half of the expected 35,000. A combination of factors convinced Congolese living in camps in Tanzania to postpone their departure. First was the uncertainty associated with the July general elections. Other factors included the need to wait for the harvest and for children to complete the school year. Finally, refugees who have been accessing decent services in the camps for years are reluctant to venture back to destroyed communities where those services are not yet available.

The political climate may change soon, however, and authorities will increase pressure upon refugees to return. Tanzania still hosts 140,000 Congolese refugees and will seize on the perception of increased security and political stability in the Congo to "convince" refugees that it is time to go home. Congolese authorities may also be keen to have the refugees back quickly to help rebuild the country, especially since in exile they acquired education and skills.

With the potential of a significant increase in the number of Congolese refugees returning in 2007, Refugees International believes that existing humanitarian coordination mechanisms are inadequate. A relief official insisted to RI, "The current coordination structure organized around leadership on sectors, like health, food security and education, works well; we do not see the need to create additional mechanisms and we are confident that needs are being met." Despite these assurances, greater leadership among humanitarian agencies is a must, especially to enhance the capacity to identify gaps and neglected groups. In fact, another official stated, "There are still significant gaps in our response to food security, access to clean water and shelter," while "the absorption capacity at the level of recipient communities must be urgently upgraded." Without these corrections in 2007 the capacity of humanitarian agencies could easily be overwhelmed and tensions among different groups arise.

The area to the south of South Kivu represents one of the best test cases for the United Nations cluster system, which has been developed throughout 2006 and which should improve the delivery of humanitarian assistance, identify gaps and hold cluster leaders accountable for responding to unmet needs. This is particularly true for the early recovery cluster, which in the DRC is led by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and supported by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Established first in the capital Kinshasa, it has never come up to speed in the east, mainly because of lack of dedicated presence and leadership by UNDP and due to insufficient support from UNHCR, which to date has no personnel in the area for this task.

With refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and demobilized soldiers often returning to the same communities, coordination among service providers and delivery of assistance on the basis of vulnerability are crucial. Some steps have been already taken: UNHCR commissioned a needs assessment in areas of returns to help organize humanitarian work and there appears to be greater use of the concept of individual assistance provided on the basis of levels of vulnerability. But there is a need for one organization to maintain an updated picture of the situation, spot pockets of neglect and breaks in assistance and then lead the response to those unmet needs. This does not mean that UNDP will have to intervene directly to provide services, but it must be aware of emerging issues and then advocate for resources to be found and actions to be taken.

Too often, priorities concerning early recovery and reintegration are sidelined in favor of more urgent or unexpected humanitarian interventions, like providing food and materials to recently displaced groups, or responding to an upsurge of cholera or unexpected drought. This is the case in the province of South Kivu, where humanitarian crises in the northwest coexist with an environment conducive to recovery and development in the south. While RI believes that the humanitarian community has resources to respond to urgent crises, it does not seem aware of the need to augment its capacity and skills to deal with the management of early recovery and reintegration activities. Both types of programs are required in South Kivu.

In South Kivu there is a real opportunity for people returning home to reintegrate successfully and restart a new life. But positive political developments and improvements in security should be matched by greater donor commitment and increased leadership from those UN agencies with the expertise and the mandate to help communities recover and people to reintegrate.

Refugees International therefore recommends that:

• Congolese authorities show greater political and financial commitment to the rebuilding of recipient communities and the provision of basic services to the population. • Donors provide greater resources to existing agencies working in the area in order to expand their capacity to rebuild community structures and services. Urgent funds should be made available to FAO to enhance its capacity to distribute agricultural seeds and tools to vulnerable households. • UNDP urgently establish a permanent base in Baraka and take the lead in coordinating the early recovery cluster in the region, including the identification of existing gaps in the reintegration process for returning people. • UNHCR hire and field a reintegration officer and facilitate the establishment of UNDP presence. • FAO strengthens its presence in Baraka with the objective of better monitoring the implementation of its partners' food security programs for returning and vulnerable groups.

Senior Advocate Andrea Lari and Advocate Rick Neal assessed the humanitarian situation in the DRC in November.

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