FLOOD TRAGEDY ADDS TO DRC’S SUFFERING

The majority of the 119 people confirmed dead after the recent flooding in eastern DR Congo were reportedly children and the elderly.

On Thursday night (8 May 2025), torrential rains going into the following day in South Kivu broke the banks of the Kasaba River, sweeping away homes in a nearby village. Dozens were also injured. Rescue operations have been hampered by the destruction of telephone lines. The tragedy adds to the misery that decades of foreign-backed resource war and ensuing internal displacement have inflicted on the region.

It’s also a stark reminder of the climate injustice our continent is subjected to. The West industrialised on the back of dirty technologies whose climate consequences Africans are feeling acutely. The DRC reportedly contributes less than 0.01% of global fossil CO2 emissions, and Africa as a whole around 4%.

Since January 2025, eastern DRC has experienced escalated violence from the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group. Although the country’s vast rainforests and peatlands serve as significant carbon sinks, they are increasingly threatened by environmental degradation due to the struggle for its resources involving foreign players.