DRC: Bicycles needed to fight "tied legs" syndrome
Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are appealing for funds to combat a tropical disease associated with the consumption of insufficiently processed cassava in western Bandundu province, officials said.
“Many villagers do not keep their cassava in water for five days to remove the cyanide before grinding,” Francois Mwakisenda, director of Kahemba heath zone in Bandundu, said.
Five days is the normal period that villagers soak their cassava before drying and pounding it in a mill. However, he said, “they find five days a long period because they don't have alternative means to get food.”
