Over the past two years, there has been a steady increase in the number of conflicts worldwide. Several international organizations, such as the ICRC, the Norwegian Peace Research Institute (PRIO), and some analysts, have stated that 2023 and 2024 were particularly violent. Never in the last three decades have so many conflicts been recorded. In 2023, the number of armed conflicts was estimated at 59, compared to 61 in 2024. And we wonder if this spiral will continue in 2025, which has seen the worsening of the wars in Ukraine and Palestine.
Africa leads the way.
Africa, with 28 conflicts recorded in 2023, tops the table. Asia follows with 17 conflicts, the Middle East with 10, Europe with 3, and the Americas with 2 conflicts. A total of 36 countries worldwide were facing episodes of conflict of varying degrees of violence. And according to PRIO researcher Siri Aas Rustad, “more than half of the states affected by violence are facing at least two or more conflicts.”
This is also the case in the DRC, where, in addition to the Rwandan-backed M23, there are other conflicts with several other armed groups, including the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) and the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO). In total, there are more than 120 active armed groups in the provinces of North and South Kivu.
75 Nobel Laureates Mobilized.
The fighting between the M23 and Congolese government forces, which has led to immense humanitarian challenges, led renowned Congolese gynecologist Denis Mukwege to mobilize 75 Nobel Laureates, who co-signed an op-ed published on June 4 in the French newspaper Le Monde, entitled “The international community must act to end the suffering of the Congolese people.” These figures denounce the inaction in the face of the crimes that continue to ravage the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
West African Jihadists groups.
In the west of the continent, the atrocities committed by Jihadist groups against the local populations of the Sahel continue and are even intensifying in some places, with the same barbarity. And here too, the international community should do more. As the 75 Noel Prize winners stated in their article: “Man-made problems require human-made solutions.”
More than 65 years after African independence, we should no longer see such a large number of conflicts on African soil; the focus should be on the well-being of the populations and improving their living conditions.
In the Central Sahel, as in the DRC, and elsewhere in the world, most conflicts very often involve non-state actors, such as armed groups, political militias, criminal gangs, or local or international terrorist groups. In the Sahel, armed groups of jihadist persuasion are trying to take control of territories and legislate according to their dogmas.
The consequences of conflict.
Around the world, the consequences of conflict are devastating for populations. Whether in Gaza, Ukraine, the DRC, the Central Sahel countries, Sudan, or elsewhere, armed conflicts are a real obstacle to development.
Essential infrastructure is destroyed, depriving populations of healthcare, education, and access to water and food, as we are seeing today in Sudan, where the conflict has been raging for more than two years.
Sudan, the worst humanitarian crisis.
This war in Sudan includes a serious humanitarian crisis with millions of displaced people, tens of thousands of deaths, and a high risk of famine and genocide. Worse still, the economy is paralyzed, agriculture destroyed, and all this is exacerbated by the devaluation of the local currency.
According to the World Food Program, food prices in Sudan in 2024 were 73% higher than the previous year and 350% above the averages of the last five years.
As part of the ongoing consequences of conflicts, particularly in Sudan, families are displaced, their members are separated, and communities remain highly vulnerable, especially children, women, and the elderly. And inevitably, human rights violations follow.
The culture of peace.
Thus, at the opening of the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York this September, the Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres declared that: “Human rights are not an ornament of peace—they are its foundation. Human rights—social, economic, political, civil, and cultural—are universal, indivisible, and interdependent. Choosing rights is more than words. It is choosing justice over silence.” It is therefore unacceptable that there are so much suffering and violence due to wars in the world today; the culture of peace should prevail.
International Humanitarian Law.
And most of the time, beyond human rights, International Humanitarian Law is flouted. With zero protection for civilians, who are often more victims of armed conflicts than military personnel. The rules of International Humanitarian Law must be taken seriously, as required by the Geneva Protocols on War. In the modern conflicts we are experiencing, some belligerent states fire hundreds of attack drones and missiles against a country without regard for whether the intended targets are military or civilian. This amounts to war crimes.
Multilateral conflict resolution mechanisms must be strengthened and imposed in peace efforts. The entire armada of texts, rules, and regulations must serve to stifle any inclinations toward conflict, which affect the prosperity and development of states and therefore the well-being of populations. This must be one of the challenges of the 21st century, a century that must be geared toward harnessing technological know-how for the well-being of populations.
Sources: ICRC – PRIO, Peace Research Institute, Oslo – United Nations – Radio Okapi – WFP –