Africa dominates list of world’s most neglected displacement crises - report

A child stands in front of a makeshift tent in a refugee camp in Tawila, North Darfur, following displacement due to ongoing conflict. (Photo: UNICEF)

By Alfred Onyango
Friday, June 5, 2026

In Sudan alone, more than nine million people are internally displaced, while nearly 19.5 million face acute hunger, as ongoing conflict and funding shortfalls continue to undermine humanitarian response efforts.

Africa continues to dominate the world’s most neglected displacement crises list, according to the latest annual tracker by the aid agency, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).

The report highlights a decade-long pattern of underfunding, limited media attention, and weak political response across multiple conflict zones spanning conflict, climate shocks and prolonged displacement hotspots amid worsening regional instability and cost pressures globally.

At the centre of the report is the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which appears on the list for the tenth consecutive year, underscoring deepening neglect of one of the world’s most protracted humanitarian emergencies.

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Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the NRC, said this is a testament to the world's failure to respond to crises that are not regarded as strategically important for rich countries.

“Millions of people are being abandoned because we have chosen not to act, not because we cannot. The uncomfortable truth is that this neglect is a choice, and something we can choose to end,” Egeland said.

Notably, the report ranks Sudan as the most neglected crisis globally, followed by the DRC, Colombia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Honduras, Ecuador, Cameroon, Nigeria and Mozambique, spanning three continents and affecting tens of millions of displaced people.

In Sudan alone, more than nine million people are internally displaced, while nearly 19.5 million face acute hunger, as ongoing conflict and funding shortfalls continue to undermine humanitarian response efforts.

The report further warns that global capacity is not the issue, but political prioritisation of crises continues to shape unequal humanitarian responses, leaving many emergencies underfunded despite rising need.

“The world does not lack for skills nor resources. Be it arranging football World Cups, or pioneering space exploration: our ability to organise and overcome challenges is almost without limit,” Egeland said.