First Advisor

Richard Dozal-Lockwood

Date of Award

Spring 6-12-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Public Health Studies: Health Services Administration and University Honors

Department

Community Health

Language

English

Subjects

Humanitarian aid, power dynamics, health system fragility, Critical humanitarianism, armed conflict, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

DOI

10.15760/honors.1833

Abstract

This paper examines humanitarian aid in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where it serves as both relief and a force reshaping local power dynamics within ongoing conflict. Humanitarian organizations provide essential services in contexts of state collapse, but aid delivery is deeply embedded in systems of coercion, negotiation, and external influence. Drawing on critical humanitarianism and the aid economy, this study analyzes how humanitarian access is negotiated, how donor priorities shape definitions of need, and how temporary interventions create dependency and instability. The paper explores how humanitarian action can reinforce alternative structures of authority, particularly in weak or absent state institutions. Through humanitarian practices, donor narratives, and historical patterns of intervention, this study shows that humanitarian aid in Eastern DRC operates within a paradox: indispensable for survival, yet sustaining crisis conditions.

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/44766

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