(Updated 8 April 2026) The Norwegian Refugee Council has, twice in this decade, declared the situation in DR Congo to be the world’s most neglected refugee crisis.
What is the crisis about?
UN humanitarian officials have voiced deep concern over the escalating humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) particularly in North Kivu.
More than 700,000 people were displaced between January and February 2025 during major M23 offensives around Goma, Bukavu, Masisi, Sake and Minova, according to UN human rights experts and humanitarian agencies.
In December 2025, a renewed M23 advance in South Kivu uprooted over 500,000 people in just over a week, according to UN OCHA and UN News.
What is the background of the conflict?
The Democratic Republic of Congo is Africa´s second-largest country and the 11th largest in the world. At 2.34 million km2 it is as big as Greenland and Iceland combined.
The mineral-rich eastern region has been plagued by fighting by at least 122 rebel groups and in some cases invading armies for more than 25 years.
Since 1996, conflict in eastern DRC has led to approximately six million deaths.
What impact does it have?
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has the largest number of internally displaced people (IDPs) on the African continent or nearly 7 million. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) projects that, if conflict continues at current levels, total internal displacement in the DRC could increase to around 9 million by the end of 2026.
One in four Congolese – or some 26.6 million people – cannot meet their basic food needs, and some 6.4 million of these are affected by acute malnutrition, a figure that has not decreased in two decades.
Four women die every hour during labour or from pregnancy-related conditions. The country also has one of the world’s highest infant mortality rates.
Flood waters have in recent years recently destroyed or damaged 100,000 houses, 1,325 schools, 267 health facilities and large swathes of agricultural land, leaving an estimated two million people, nearly 60 per cent of them children, in need of assistance.
The disaster struck at a time when the country was grappling with one of the worst cholera outbreaks in years. Cholera is one of the most severe yet preventable epidemics that take a significant toll on human life every year due to poor infrastructure, constraints to health access and low vaccination coverage.
UN RESPONSE
The United Nations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo consists of a peacekeeping mission and 22 programmes, funds and specialized agencies working together for the stabilization and development of the DRC, while providing humanitarian assistance to the most needy.
MONUSCO, the UN Peacekeeping mission in DRC was created in 1999. It is the UN´s biggest peackeeping mission.
In December 2025, the UN Security Council renewed MONUSCO’s mandate until 20 December 2026.
Under Resolution 2808 MONUSCO is authorized to have 13,800 uniformed personel, including 11,500 military personnel.
It is estimated that $1.4 billion is required for humanitarian assistance in DRC in 2026.
This is the amount requested by the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the UN humanitarian community to respond to the most urgent needs this year. It is estimated that 14.9 million are in need, but 7.3 are targeted que to funding limits. The reduced targeting reflects only lack of funds, not a reduction in needs.
What you can do?
For further information:
- UN Security Council resolution on MONUSCO
- See UNRIC’s Backgrounder
- Humanitarian Needs Overview
- Humanitarian Response Plan
- Funding update