Millions of people live in camps in the eastern part of Congo, displaced by roaming militias, near the borders of Rwanda and Uganda. This region has been referred to as the “rape capital of the world.” Up until recently, women and girls victims of sexual violence could at the very least access post-rape treatment kits – known as PEP kits – that had a 90% chance to reduce the transmission of HIV if taken within 72 hours of exposure to the virus. Aid agencies, including CARE, warn that funding cuts are likely to lead to soaring HIV infection rates as health workers find themselves unable to offer any medical treatment to women and girls who have been raped and seek help.
“Most of the women call me crying. They are very worried, but we have no drugs to give them,” says Noella Ndoole, CARE Protection Officer in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
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