Sexual Violence Against Children Worsens Across DR Congo, Over 35,000 Cases Reported in 2025: UNICEF. 

Kinshasa/New York:

Sexual violence against children has become deeply entrenched and continues to rise across the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to a new UNICEF report released on 30 December 2025. The report reveals that more than 35,000 cases of child rape and sexual assault were recorded nationwide during the first nine months of 2025, underscoring a growing humanitarian and child protection crisis.

UNICEF data compiled from protection and gender-based violence service providers show that the scale of abuse has increased sharply since 2022. In 2024 alone, nearly 45,000 cases of sexual violence against children were documented, representing almost 40 per cent of all reported sexual violence cases in the country—three times higher than figures recorded in 2022. UNICEF warned that these numbers likely reflect only a fraction of the true scale of abuse, as many cases go unreported due to fear, stigma, insecurity, and limited access to support services.

Describing the situation as “endemic and systemic,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell highlighted the human suffering behind the statistics. She said case workers frequently encounter families travelling long distances to seek medical care for children who have suffered severe abuse, while fear of retaliation and social stigma often prevents families from reporting crimes. “Stories like these are repeated across provinces, exposing an entrenched crisis driven by insecurity, inequality, and weak support systems,” she said.

The report identifies clear regional patterns. The highest number of cases has been recorded in conflict-affected provinces such as North Kivu, South Kivu, and Ituri, where armed violence, displacement, and the collapse of protection systems have left children extremely vulnerable. However, significant numbers have also been documented in Kinshasa and the Kasai regions, where poverty, food insecurity, school dropouts, and early marriage contribute to increased risks of exploitation.

Adolescent girls remain the most affected group nationwide, accounting for a growing majority of survivors. While boys are also subjected to sexual violence, they remain significantly under-represented in reported cases. Children with disabilities face particularly high risks, as physical, social, and communication barriers both increase their vulnerability and limit their access to justice and care.

Separate UN-verified data from conflict-affected areas show that cases of sexual violence against children were already alarmingly high in 2022 and 2023, before rising by nearly 30 per cent in 2024. Preliminary figures from early 2025 suggest the crisis remains acute, with reported cases in the first half of the year potentially accounting for more than 80 per cent of last year’s total.

Survivors often suffer serious physical injuries, unwanted pregnancies, increased risk of HIV and other infections, and profound psychological trauma, including fear, anxiety, depression, and social exclusion. Despite these needs, access to life-saving services remains severely limited.

UNICEF, in partnership with the government and local organizations, continues to provide survivor-centred support, including medical care, psychosocial services, safe spaces, and case management. Between 2022 and 2024, the number of child survivors assisted by UNICEF increased by 143 per cent, reaching more than 24,200 children in the most affected provinces in 2024.

However, ongoing insecurity and global funding cuts have forced many UNICEF-supported safe spaces, mobile clinics, and community protection programmes to scale back or shut down. By mid-2025, only 23 per cent of gender-based violence response interventions were funded, down from 48 per cent in 2022, placing hundreds of thousands of children—especially in eastern conflict zones—at risk of losing critical support.

UNICEF has called on the Congolese government, parties to the conflict, civil society, and international partners to urgently strengthen prevention and response efforts. The agency urged an end to all forms of sexual violence against children, expansion of child-focused survivor services, stronger accountability through investigations and prosecutions, and sustained investment in protection and community-based prevention.

“Addressing this crisis requires immediate action and strict adherence to international law,” Russell said. “Perpetrators must be held accountable, and children must have access to protection, justice, and care.”