DRC: the forgotten crisis affecting millions of displaced people

The DRC almost never makes the headlines on French television news. And yet it is one of the most serious, longest-running and most neglected humanitarian crises on the planet. For decades, the east of the country has been torn apart by armed conflicts that uproot millions of civilians and stretch humanitarian capacity to breaking point.

This guide explains what is really happening in the DRC, why it is so hard to resolve, and how you can take practical action from France.

What is the situation in the DRC in 2026?

The crisis is centred on the east of the country: the provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri and Tanganyika account for most of the violence and displacement. The conflict involves dozens of armed groups, including M23, which the UN says is backed by Rwanda, and the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC).

According to OCHA's report published in February 2026, in January 2026 alone 74,000 people were forced to flee their homes, bringing the total number of internally displaced people to 6.47 million. Of these, 76% fled because of armed group activity and fighting. Women and children make up 80% of this uprooted population.

The crisis in numbers

Sources: OCHA DRC, January and February 2026 reports

Why has the crisis in the DRC lasted so long?

The DRC is Africa's second-largest country, with vast natural resources (coltan, cobalt, gold, diamonds). This wealth has fuelled rivalry and conflict for decades.

Several factors make the crisis especially hard to resolve:

• The sheer number of armed actors: more than 100 armed groups operate in the east of the country, with very different agendas and sources of funding
• Regional interference: neighbouring countries directly or indirectly support some of these groups
• Weak state presence in some remote areas: the regular army does not control the whole territory
• The vastness of the country: conflict zones are often hard to reach and lack basic infrastructure

This complexity does not excuse the media's silence on the crisis. But it partly explains why the international community struggles to commit to it over the long term.

Who is affected?

Behind the figures are real faces. The vast majority of displaced people in the DRC are civilians who play no part in the conflicts. They are farmers, herders and families who lived in remote villages and lost everything overnight.

The most vulnerable are women who head their households: in North Kivu, according to OCHA, 91.2% of them have poor food consumption. Children are especially at risk: severe acute malnutrition, disease and no way to go to school. In South Kivu alone, 688,000 pupils had no access to education in January 2026.

Most displaced people live with host families who share what little they have. Others crowd into collective centres, schools and churches. Others still sleep out in the open.

How LIFE is helping in the DRC

LIFE has been working in eastern DRC for several years, in an extremely challenging operating environment. Its programmes target the most urgent needs of displaced people:

• Emergency food aid: distributions of food parcels and cash for displaced families
• Access to safe drinking water: support for water points in affected areas
• Essential kits: hygiene items, emergency shelter, blankets
• Support for host communities: families who take in displaced people also suffer an economic shock, which LIFE works to ease

LIFE works with local partners who understand the dynamics on the ground and can reach areas that are often out of bounds for international humanitarian organisations.

To follow LIFE's operations in the DRC, visit life-ong.org/urgences/rdcongo. Our donor relations team can give you detailed information about current programmes.

Why giving to the DRC makes a real difference today

The crisis in the DRC is one of the most underfunded in the world. In 2025, barely 23.9% of needs were met. In 2026, the response plan was scaled back for lack of resources: millions of vulnerable people who should have received help will get none.

Against this backdrop, every euro you give to LIFE for the DRC helps fill the gap left by institutional donors pulling back.

To understand how NGOs handle humanitarian emergencies and how your donation is put to work on the ground, our article Humanitarian emergencies: how NGOs respond on the ground explains the whole process. To learn about another of Africa's forgotten crises, read our article Crisis in Sudan: understanding the situation and knowing where to give. And to understand how international humanitarian law is meant to protect civilians in these areas, our article International humanitarian law: the rules that protect civilians in war zones sets out the framework.