DRC Faces Record Hunger Crisis Amid Escalating Conflict and Rising Food Prices

DRC. WFP Emergency response to the displaced following M23 attacks — WFP provides assistance to newly displaced and vulnerable host families on the outskirts of Goma, scaling up efforts to meet growing needs. Attacks in the Rutshuru territory, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, have forced more than 188,000 people – more than half of them women and children – to flee their homes. The families in this photo are in Munigi, Nyiragongo territory, receive High-Energy Biscuits (HEB) within days of fleeing the ongoing conflict. The latest bout of violence displaced at least 188,000 people since 20 October in Rutshuru territory, eastern DRC, where more than 16,500 others have sought refuge in Uganda. The humanitarian community estimates that approximately 237,000 people need assistance, the majority of whom are in Nyiragongo territory (110,000 IDPs), some in Rutshuru (85,000) and Lubero (42,000). At least 53% of these displaced persons have found refuge with host families, while the rest stay in collective sites and centres (churches, schools, stadiums, and other places).

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is grappling with a record humanitarian crisis, as 28 million people face acute hunger, exacerbated by escalating conflict in the eastern part of the country. According to the United Nations, the surge in hunger is driven by the ongoing violence between Government forces and Rwandan-backed M23 rebels, which has intensified since December.
The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned on March 27 that the situation is dire, with an additional 2.5 million people falling into acute hunger since the recent upsurge in violence.
The report highlights that 3.9 million of the 28 million facing food insecurity are experiencing emergency levels of hunger, classified as Phase 4 in the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), which signals critical food shortages. Eastern DRC has been particularly hard hit, with more than 10 million people affected by food insecurity due to ongoing conflict and displacement. Athman Mravili, the interim FAO representative, noted that the loss of crops, soaring food prices, and the growing vulnerability of millions are contributing to the crisis, which has seen the country’s food situation deteriorate rapidly.
The economic challenges of the DRC, including soaring food prices, inflation, and the depreciation of the Congolese franc, have compounded the difficulties faced by the population. The conflict has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, while cuts in foreign aid from major donors like the US have left humanitarian agencies struggling to respond effectively. With the country’s ongoing insecurity and the broader impacts of climate change and natural disasters, the situation remains critical, and the international community faces mounting pressure to address the growing humanitarian disaster in the region.