Escalation of violence and displacement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC): Ministerial-level Virtual Roundtable | Summary Conclusions by the Co-hosts

The Ministerial-level Virtual Roundtable on the escalation of violence and displacement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) took place virtually on 4 April 2025, co-hosted by the European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib; the African Union Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development Amma Twum-Amoah; and UN Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator Joyce Msuya.

The Ministerial Roundtable took place following a drastic deterioration of the humanitarian situation in eastern DRC since the beginning of 2025, triggered by the severe escalation in conflict since late December 2024. Heavy fighting around densely populated areas in the largest city in eastern DRC, Goma, as well as Bukavu and other areas, has forced some 3 million people to move and caused thousands of civilian deaths and injuries. The fighting has continued heavily in South Kivu and towards Uvira, further increasing the risk of civilian harm and regional escalation.

Amid shifting control and mounting insecurity, displacement sites around Goma have been dismantled, triggering large-scale returns of internally displaced people (IDPs) to their areas of origin, many under conditions that appear involuntary and fail to meet international standards of safety, voluntariness, and dignity. These movements have significantly heightened protection risks, including a sharp increase of conflict-related sexual violence, as well as housing, land and property (HLP) issues that are fuelling tensions in areas of return.

The humanitarian response was severely undermined as key humanitarian warehouses containing food, medical supplies and essential items were looted or destroyed, and the continued closure of Goma and Bukavu airports has critically hampered aid operations. These operational setbacks have been compounded by a sharp decline in humanitarian funding for the DRC, with reductions from several major donors further straining response capacity. As a result, humanitarian actors are being forced to make painful prioritization choices. Despite these mounting challenges, humanitarian actors continue to adapt to the new context and are bringing aid and services back to scale. However, without urgent and sustained support, the situation risks deteriorating further.

The Ministerial Roundtable was briefed on the humanitarian situation in the country and assessed the ongoing humanitarian response. It discussed how to scale-up the response, how to support principled humanitarian access inter alia through humanitarian diplomacy, and how to better coordinate efforts to mitigate the risk of regional impacts.

In terms of the humanitarian response, participants agreed to reinforce efforts to scale up the response in a manner that reflects the urgency as well as scale and severity of the crisis, including by front-loading or increasing funding for humanitarian aid where possible. Ministers agreed to fully support the humanitarian system in-country under the leadership of the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator (RC/HC) to increase prioritisation efforts and urged humanitarian actors to maintain the centrality of protection as well as conflict-sensitive and gender-responsive approaches, with a focus on flexible, people-centred responses to adapt to the evolving context and needs of vulnerable populations.

Ministers agreed to deliver collective humanitarian advocacy messaging, with a view towards ensuring the protection of civilians and full, principled humanitarian access in eastern DRC. The main humanitarian advocacy points, directed to UN Member States and parties to the conflict, comprise the following points:

1. Prioritize efforts to achieve and implement an effective ceasefire and move towards lasting peace, including through more support for efforts already under way.
2. Keep borders open for refugees, allow safe movement of civilians away from areas of fighting, and ensure that any returns of displaced people are voluntary. Prevent forced displacement.
3. Allow and facilitate the safe, rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian personnel and goods; ensure exemption from taxes for humanitarian supplies; and re-open Goma and Bukavu airports as soon as possible. Protect humanitarian staff and assets.
4. Respect International Humanitarian Law (IHL), including by protecting civilians and civilian objects and prohibiting sexual violence and other inhuman treatment, particularly in the context of camp closures in Goma and forced returns of civilians to areas of origin. Health workers, facilities, transports and equipment must be protected.
5. Ensure the urgent resumption of essential services (including health, education, telecommunications, electricity, water and banks) for civilians in M23-controlled territories, in particular in Goma.
6. Take all feasible steps to increase and maintain humanitarian funding.

Participants also highlighted the severe impact of the conflict on neighbouring countries, including refugee flows from the DRC to Burundi and Uganda and agreed to remain closely coordinated on this situation and to step up response efforts where possible.

Despite being one of the largest humanitarian crises globally, participants noted that the recent escalation of the crisis has received limited public attention. They stressed the importance of keeping the DRC crisis at the top of the regional and international agenda, both in high-level discussions and the media.

Note: This summary reflects the co-hosts’ understanding of the discussions; it does not represent the official views of the participants.