Democratic Republic of the Congo

As conflict escalated in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) in early 2025, worsening insecurity and the occupation of territory by the Mouvement du 23 mars (M23) forces resulted in new contamination by explosive remnants of war (ERW) and disrupted mine action operations. This, coupled with a reduction in funding, precluded survey and clearance of cluster munition remnants (CMR) during the year. The domestic process to ratify the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) saw no progress, although the ratification law was reportedly approved by both chambers of Parliament in 2024. DR Congo indicated its intention to ratify before the Third Review Conference in September 2026.

• DR Congo should ratify the CCM as soon as possible. DR Congo signed the Convention in 2009.

• In line with the updated National Mine Action Work Plan 2023–32, DR Congo should prioritise the conduct of a new national survey of explosive ordnance, including CMR, in order to update baseline contamination data.

• DR Congo should prioritise survey and clearance in Bolomba territory in Equateur province, which accounts for the vast majority of the remaining CMR contamination.

• DR Congo should mobilise predictable and flexible funding to enable operators to sustain survey and clearance and address effectively new contamination.

Click here to download the full "Clearing Cluster Munition Remnants 2026" report for Democratic Republic of Congo.