The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) is now home to the largest number of internally displaced people in Africa. According to the United Nations, a quarter of the population require assistance.
NRC in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is on the ground, supporting urgent humanitarian needs in the eastern provinces, which have been hit hard by violence and insecurity.
What’s happening in DR Congo?
For decades, DR Congo has been grappling with conflict, political instability and economic challenges. Violence is widespread and the situation is highly complex, with more than 120 non-state armed groups in the east of the country alone. Some of these groups stir up tensions between communities – and all too often, civilians are caught in the crossfire.
As a result, over eight million Congolese have fled their homes. Most of these people have settled in the east of the country, but they have little support, access to basic services or protection from future violence. Disease outbreaks are frequent and malnutrition rife. In fact, DR Congo is facing one of the worst hunger emergencies worldwide.
Congolese women and children are particularly affected by the crisis and are often exposed to the worst forms of abuse and exploitation, with one in seven women affected by gender-based violence before the age of 18. This threat is greater still in conflict-affected communities – and in the face of all these difficulties and dangers, many displaced families end up moving on many times over.
Region: Central Africa
Population: 105.8 million
Total displaced: 7.9 million
Refugees hosted: 0.5 million
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is on the ground, supporting urgent humanitarian needs in the eastern provinces, which have been hit hard by violence and insecurity.
What’s happening in DR Congo?
For decades, DR Congo has been grappling with conflict, political instability and economic challenges. Violence is widespread and the situation is highly complex, with more than 120 non-state armed groups in the east of the country alone. Some of these groups stir up tensions between communities – and all too often, civilians are caught in the crossfire.
As a result, over eight million Congolese have fled their homes. Most of these people have settled in the east of the country, but they have little support, access to basic services or protection from future violence. Disease outbreaks are frequent and malnutrition rife. In fact, DR Congo is facing one of the worst hunger emergencies worldwide.
Congolese women and children are particularly affected by the crisis and are often exposed to the worst forms of abuse and exploitation, with one in seven women affected by gender-based violence before the age of 18. This threat is greater still in conflict-affected communities – and in the face of all these difficulties and dangers, many displaced families end up moving on many times over.
Our response
We’re working with our partners in the provinces of Ituri, South Kivu and North Kivu to support people in the following ways:
- Water, sanitation and hygiene – providing safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene facilities, as well as promoting better hygiene practices in settlement sites, schools and host/returnee communities.
- Shelter and settlements – supporting families with cash assistance, building materials and construction expertise, so they can rebuild their homes.
- Livelihoods and food security – providing vulnerable families with seeds and tools, and helping them to develop small enterprises through cash business grants.
- Education – helping displaced children and young people to access decent, safe and inclusive learning opportunities that support their psychosocial and emotional wellbeing.
- Protection from violence – mitigating conflict between communities and supporting social cohesion through dialogue and mediation processes.
- Information, counselling and legal assistance – helping people fight forced evictions, claim their rights and get vital legal documentation and birth certificates. We also provide technical due diligence services to help people access and secure land tenure.
- Emergency response – delivering a rapid response when disaster strikes and providing affected families with vital cash or in-kind assistance.
Our operations
NRC office established: 2001
Areas of operation: Goma (Country Office), Ituri, North Kivu, Tanganyika
Country Director: Eric Batonon
Contact: eric.batonon@nrc.no
Our impact
In 2023, we assisted 389,255 people through our programmes in DR Congo:
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40,644Education
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1,650Livelihoods and food security
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56,707Shelter and settlements
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126,420Protection from violence
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9,318Information, counselling and legal assistance
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74,872Water, sanitation and hygiene
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124,325Other activities
Note: some people received more than one type of assistance.
