In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the STEP Project is providing vulnerable youths and adults with professional training and financial support, with a focus on the development of entrepreneurial skills.
The World Bank International Development Association’s (IDA) flagship social protection program, “STEP” (Projet pour la Stabilisation de l’Est de la RDC pour la Paix), supported poor populations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Covering six provinces and the capital, Kinshasa, STEP has benefited over 5.8 million people, including 3 million women. STEP built nearly 2,85 basic infrastructures in 1,166 vulnerable communities and provided comprehensive safety nets—which included unconditional cash transfers, cash-for-work, investment grants, and measures such as entrepreneurship and life skills trainings —to 530,000 individuals, who received a total of $93 million in cash between them.
The IDA-supported Ebola program strengthened community resilience by providing temporary jobs to beneficiaries in Ebola hotspots. Overall, more than 35,000 direct beneficiaries have worked more than a million days (as of September 30, 2020) and received about $3 million in stipends.
After years of conflicts between the Twa and Bantu, mediation activities bring back peace in Tanganyika Province.
Local Solutions to the Global Forced Displacement Crisis
The World Bank’s Board of Directors has approved support to the DRC to help poor and vulnerable communities find better livelihoods and to rebuild community infrastructure, focusing on the conflict-affected eastern part of the country.