The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has sounded a major alarm regarding the dramatic surge in violence against forcibly displaced women and girls in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and among refugees fleeing Sudan into Chad.
The situation is exacerbated by critically insufficient humanitarian funding. UNHCR reports that assistance capacity is rapidly reaching its limits in both regions.
Following the attack on the Sudanese town of El Fasher on October 24, more than 9,500 refugees have crossed the border into eastern Chad. Over 80% of these new arrivals are women and children, many of whom are unaccompanied or separated from their families.
According to UNHCR data from these new arrivals: 70% of survivors have suffered psychological and emotional trauma. 5% have been raped. 11% have suffered physical assaults, including abduction, torture, and detention by armed groups.
A critical challenge is that many refugees arrive more than 72 hours after an incident, which renders crucial emergency medical care largely ineffective in preventing infections, pregnancies, or severe complications.
In the DRC, the situation remains dire. Approximately 60% of all reported protection incidents involve sexual violence, with nearly 89% of victims being women and girls. Disturbingly, more than half of these victims are children.
Despite the overwhelming need, assistance remains largely unmet; only 9% of victims had received adequate assistance by September 2025.
Despite visible gaps and reduced funding, UNHCR and its partners continue to provide vital services, including safe spaces, psychosocial care, legal advice, and community-based prevention programs, reaching over 101,000 people.
However, the funding gap is crippling: the amount required for violence prevention and assistance to survivors in West and Central Africa for 2025 is $61 million, but only 27% of that amount has been secured.
Nora Staunton, Senior Protection Coordinator at UNHCR West and Central Africa, stressed the urgency: “Survivors cannot wait. Every day without action exposes more girls and women to violence. Without urgent support, thousands will remain without the necessary protection and care.” UNHCR is calling on donors and governments to immediately increase flexible, multi-year funding for protection activities.
AC/Sf/fss/abj/APA