Congo’s Next Big Crisis

Jul 23, 2017 | Ulrika Blom
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DR Congo made headlines this year as it topped the charts for the world’s highest number of people fleeing conflict internally. This year could see things really fall apart as a looming food crisis threatens to tip the country into a full-blown humanitarian catastrophe.

Nearly half of DR Congo’s 26 provinces are affected by inter-communal conflict, armed violence, natural disasters and disease. As the one-year anniversary of the Kasaï conflict nears, over 1.4 million people have been displaced in the turbulent region alone.

The violence is having a rippling effect on communities. Families are unable to access their land during armed fighting, and as a result are being pushed deeper towards vulnerability.