§ John BarrettTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the potential danger arising from flooding of the River Congo during the coming rainy season. [84989]
§ Clare ShortDecember is the month when the level of the river is usually at its highest level. On 27 November the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo warned that the level of the Congo river this year is rising at a rate, and to an extent, that suggests flooding is possible. In 1999, the last time the Congo river flooded at Kinshasa, as many as 80,000 people were displaced.