The UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced people, Paula Gaviria, said Monday that the resolution of the internal displacement crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) requires the implementation of government-led strategies and policies that address the root causes of the crisis. Gaviria’s statement followed her official visit to the DRC, and she plans to present a detailed report to the UN Human Rights Council in June 2026.

Gaviria emphasized that the DRC’s government must take the lead in protecting the millions of people who have been internally displaced due to the ongoing armed conflict and who continue to face human rights abuses. She acknowledged the government’s efforts to reform and enhance its national policy and legal framework related to internal displacement through conflict management and land reform. However, she stressed the need for the government to continue its efforts and take full responsibility for providing displaced individuals with essential services, especially in light of the significant decline in foreign assistance.

On this issue, the UN Special Rapporteur stated: “Given the decline in international assistance, the government can no longer afford to outsource its responsibilities towards internally displaced persons and must take the lead in ensuring coordinated, accountable responses to internal displacement throughout its territory.”

Furthermore, the UN Rapporteur highlighted the necessity of facilitating the safe and permanent return of displaced Congolese nationals to their lands alongside finding sustainable solutions to their internal displacement, which requires the cooperation of the international community.

The DRC has been plagued by armed conflict between Congolese military forces and various non-state armed groups, leading to a humanitarian crisis. In addition to numerous human rights abuses against civilians and the breakdown of essential services like food provision and healthcare, the conflict has resulted in the displacement of 6.9 million people across the DRC, making it one of the countries with the highest numbers of internally displaced people in the world.

Another factor contributing to the DRC’s internal displacement crisis is the forced eviction of communities from their lands to facilitate mining activities. In 2023, a report by Amnesty International revealed that many Congolese people were forcibly evicted or threatened with eviction from their lands while entire neighborhoods were demolished, to allow the expansion of copper and cobalt mines. In response, the government initiated a land reform process aimed at improving governance on the question. This reform seeks to facilitate the recognition of tenure security for customary lands in both urban and rural areas, enhance the recognition of land rights for marginalized groups such as women and indigenous people, and modernize land administration through the creation of a land information system to help prevent and resolve land conflicts.