Livelihoods, basic services and social protection in Democratic Republic of the Congo – Discussion papers

This paper undertakes a critical review of existing evidence on livelihoods and the delivery of basic services and social protection interventions in DRC, paying extra attention to the eastern provinces. Livelihoods sectors that are dealt with cover mining, agriculture, and petty trade. Basic services refer to health, education, transport, water and sanitation. The objective of the paper is to help pinpoint strategic opportunities for future research on how best to promote improvements in the quality of life for conflict-affected populations. The paper consists of four sections, starting with an overview of the country context and conflict history (#2), followed by an overview of livelihoods in DRC (#3), including a review of the existing responses on the part of government institutions, aid agencies, local populations and the private sector to support livelihoods; also a section (#4) summarising the
populations’ access to basic services and social protection interventions. Finally (#5), the paper presents an analysis of the data, evidence and the methodologies utilised in the literature reviewed.