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What will Gaza ceasefire mean for ‘forgotten’ conflicts in Africa?

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While a deal to halt hostility in Gaza may open up a window for renewed focus on wars in Africa – particularly in Sudan, the DRC and Sahel – analysts warn that African voices and advocates must push harder for the global community to act. The world’s attention over the past couple of years has been on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. Global news headlines as well as the regard of the world’s policymakers and donors have been dominated by the two conflicts – in Europe and the Middle East. In Africa, on the other hand, ongoing conflicts creating some of the world’s worst humanitarian crises have been largely overlooked.

Sudan, the DRC, Sahel

A raging war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in Sudan has been ranked by the International Rescue Committee as the world’s single biggest humanitarian crisis. With more than 20 million people — nearly half the population — experiencing severe food insecurity Sudan, according to the UN, has become one of the world’s worst hunger crises. “The ongoing civil war has devastated agricultural production, displaced millions and left humanitarian aid efforts dangerously underfunded. Entire communities are at risk of famine, with children and vulnerable populations bearing the brunt of starvation and disease,” says Federico Manfredi Firmian, a foreign policy expert on the Middle East, Africa and Russia and associate research fellow at the Italian Institute for International Political Studies.

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In the DRC, the resurgence of the M23 militia movement has ignited decades of deadly cross-border violence in the eastern region, displacing millions of people and causing worsening humanitarian disasters. Violent conflicts by jihadists in the Sahel region – Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, in particular – continue to cause mayhem, creating crises in the affected regions. The armed insurgency in Burkina Faso – where more than two million people have been displaced – triggers the world’s “most neglected displacement crisis”, according to a ranking by the Norwegian Refugee Council.

Deep systemic inequities

The disproportionate global focus on Gaza and Ukraine has sidelined critical conflicts in Africa, leaving them underfunded and deprioritised, says Ikhlass Ahmed, a programme officer at NGO Darfur Advocacy Group. This selective attention, she tells The Africa Report, creates a hierarchy of suffering, where the lives of those in Africa seem to matter less. “It exacerbates the humanitarian crisis as aid is diverted and political solutions are delayed, allowing conflicts to persist with devastating consequences for civilians,” Ahmed says.

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The focus on Gaza and Ukraine has diverted crucial donor funds, humanitarian assistance and political will away from Africa’s crises, exacerbating the suffering of millions, says Firmian. While conflicts like Gaza and Ukraine demand attention, the failure to address humanitarian catastrophes in Sudan, Burkina Faso and other African nations reflects deep systemic inequities in global prioritisation. “Despite the severity of the crises, international aid remains scarce. Burkina Faso remains largely absent from global headlines,” he adds, warning that the international community “must recognise that the cost of inaction in Africa is not just regional instability but a profound moral failing.”

Window for a renewed focus on Africa

An announcement by outgoing US President Joe Biden this week that there was a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas has triggered celebrations in Gaza. The ceasefire, which was supposed to take effect on 12 January, has been put on hold after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held up the cabinet vote deal, accusing Hamas of ‘blackmail’. Though it’s not clear if the ceasefire will materialise, Ahmed says a Gaza ceasefire deal may open up a window for renewed focus on the forgotten conflicts in Africa.

The world’s attention has been on Gaza since the 7 October 2023 Hamas assault on Israel and the ensuing bombardment of the Gaza Strip by Israeli troops. In theory, Firmian says, the ceasefire in Gaza should free up diplomatic and media bandwidth to focus more on conflicts in Africa, particularly Sudan. However, he warns that the incoming administration in the US is unlikely to prioritise Africa, citing Donald Trump’s previous foreign policy which showed limited engagement with African conflicts and multilateral humanitarian or peacekeeping initiatives. Firmian also tips divisions within the UN to continue to complicate international mediation efforts. “The Security Council, already polarised over issues like Ukraine and Gaza, will continue to struggle to find consensus over the conflicts in Sudan and the Sahel,” he says. “Many donor countries have already stretched their resources thin due to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, leaving limited capacity for significant new commitments.”

Plight of jailed journalists in Africa

A January 2024 report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) found that the plight of Palestinian journalists has taken the world’s focus away from Africa where more journalists were being jailed. Israel’s status as one of the world’s worst jailers of journalists has been grabbing the headlines given that the Israel-Gaza war continues to dominate the global news agenda. “In the process, the plight of detained journalists in Africa has largely been ignored, in much the same way that the conflicts and resultant humanitarian crises in several African countries hardly get global attention,” says Angela Quintal, CPJ’s Africa programme coordinator. For CPJ, the lack of global attention on the plight of journalists in African jails sends a disturbing signal to the African leaders. “It is unsurprising that some of the leaders and autocrats on our continent are emboldened. They know the world isn’t watching and probably doesn’t care,” Quintal tells The Africa Report.

For Sudanese activist Ahmed, the shift in global attention often depends on the priorities of policymakers and donors – who may be influenced by geopolitical interests rather than humanitarian needs alone. “While there is hope for increased visibility, there’s no guarantee unless African voices and advocates push harder for the international community to act on these crises,” she says.

By Sheriff Bojang Jnr

The Africa Report

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