Lost in the Noise. Escalating Conflict in the DRC

A mother covering herself using a tent during the DRC Crisis.

Context 

Away from the global spotlight, a humanitarian crisis is unfolding in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Since 1996, the country has been embroiled in a complicated conflict. Over 6 million people have been killed and 7 million displaced. 

The country has faced an escalating humanitarian crisis for years. Food, water and shelter and urgently needed. Essential services, including healthcare, sanitation, and education, are critically underfunded, exacerbating the suffering of those already grappling with the consequences of displacement and violence. Women continue to be hardest hit, with already high levels of gender-based and sexual violence further on the rise. 

Camps for displaced people have recently been the target of bomb attacks, making no place safe for civilians to flee, especially in the Eastern part of the country. Still, despite a deepening crisis and escalating violence, the DRC is largely overlooked by both the media and the international community.   

Julienne Lusenge, Director of the Congolese Women's Fund and Nobel Women’s Initiative Board Member, highlights:  

“The escalating conflict in the DRC has been overlooked for too long. The situation is rarely mentioned in international media, nor does it make it onto the agendas of international policy-makers. The little humanitarian funding the DRC received has dwindled in favor of headlining conflicts. This must change.”   

What can we do? 

NWI invites you to join us for a much needed conversation with Congolese leaders and activists about the escalating violence and humanitarian crisis in the DRC, and what the international community can and should do to respond.

Moderator:  

Nermeen Shaikh

Nermeen is a broadcast news producer, published author and co-host for Democracy Now based in New York City. She worked in research and nongovernmental organizations before joining Democracy Now! She has a masters of philosophy from Cambridge University and is the author of The Present as History: Critical Perspectives on Global Power (Columbia University Press). 

Opening remarks: 

Jody Williams

Jody Williams received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997 for her work to ban landmines through the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, which shared the Peace Prize with her that year. In 2006 she co-founded the Nobel Women's Initiative, which she chairs to this day, where she works together with other women Nobel Peace Prize laureates to elevate the voices and support the work of women peace activists around the world.

Speakers: 

Bineta Diop

Bineta Diop is Special Envoy of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission on Women, Peace and Security. She is also the founder and President of Femmes Africa Solidarité (FAS), an international NGO working to foster, strengthen and promote the leadership role of women in conflict prevention, management, and resolution in Africa.

Julienne Lusenge 

Julienne Lusenge is a human rights activist from the Eastern part of the DRC. She has been widely recognized for her activism for survivors of wartime sexual violence. She is co-founder and President of Female Solidarity for Integrated Peace and Development and director of the Congolese Women's Fund. In 2023 Julienne was awarded the honourable mention for the Félix Houphouët-Boigny-UNESCO Peace Prize for her long-time commitment to victims of sexual violence in North Kivu, DRC. She was named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2024.

Nicole Musimbi 

Nicole is a Program Coordinator at Nobel Women’s Initiative based in Goma, DRC. Nicole co-launched The Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) Coalition in DRC, which ensured the ownership and leadership of Congolese youth in the development of the country’s first National Action Plan on YPS. She is a committed peace activist passionate in particular about inclusion and contribution of young women to peacebuilding.  

Listen to the conversation 

Please click the link below to listen to the conversation:

Webinar: Lost in the Noise. Escalating Conflict in the DRC.  

Bineta Diop's photo was taken by World Economic Forum / Jakob Polacsek

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