Kibati Village Boy

Kibati is a small village north of Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu. The village and surrounding areas have been impacted by the effects of years of fighting between government troops and various militia groups. Today there are an estimated 600,000 displaced people throughout North Kivu province.

The area was subjected to the 2008 Nord-Kivu campaign, an armed conflict between the army of Congo (backed by the UN) and a Tutsi militia group. The UNHCR, with the help of Ben Affleck and Sir Mick Jagger launched a campaign the same year to raise funds for those displaced. The campaign featured a video, Gimme Shelter that was directed by Affleck and filmed by John Toll.

More recently, the rebel group M23 fought an 18-month long uprising in the area, making incursions into Virunga National Park in the process. If you've seen the excellently made Virunga film, you will be familiar with the group.