North Kivu

North Kivu (Swahili: Jimbo la Kivu Kaskazini) is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital city is Goma. Spanning approximately 59,483 square kilometers with a population estimate of 8,147,400 as of 2020, it is bordered by Ituri Province to the north, Tshopo Province to the northwest, Maniema Province to the southwest, and South Kivu Province to the south, as well as Uganda and Rwanda to the east.
North Kivu's administrative history traces back to the colonial era when it was initially part of the Stanley Falls District within the Congo Free State. Following a series of territorial reorganizations, North Kivu became incorporated into Orientale Province, with Stanleyville (modern-day Kisangani) as the provincial capital. The area gained provincial status in 1962 but was demoted to a district under Mobutu Sese Seko's regime in 1965. It was formally reinstated in 1988 under Ordinance-Law No. 88/1976 and Ordinance-Law No. 88-031, which redefined the previous Kivu Province into tripartite separate provinces: North Kivu, South Kivu, and Maniema. Presently, North Kivu comprises three cities—Goma, Butembo, and Beni—and six territories: Beni, Lubero, Masisi, Rutshuru, Nyiragongo, and Walikale. A 2013 decree also proposed city status for Kasindi, Oicha, and Luholu. The province's eastern border is home to the Rwenzori Mountains, part of the Albertine Rift, which serves as a key freshwater source and supports a diverse ecosystem. North Kivu also hosts Virunga National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site home to endangered mountain gorillas.
The province is confronted with ongoing security challenges stemming from armed groups, resource-related conflicts, and ethnic tensions. The Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group has been a significant source of instability. As of early 2024, M23-related violence had displaced approximately 1.7 million people, accounting for nearly 14% of North Kivu's population.
North Kivu has also been the site of multiple outbreaks of the Ebola virus disease (including the most recent in August 2022) and was the center of the 2018–2020 Kivu Ebola outbreak, which was the second largest in history, resulting in over 3400 cases and 2200 deaths, following the 2014–2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak.
Situated along the equator, North Kivu spans latitudes from 0° 58' north to 2° 03' south and longitudes from 27° 14' west to 29° 58' east. Its topography ranges from less than 800 meters to peaks exceeding 5,000 meters in altitude, comprising diverse formations including plains, plateaus, and mountainous regions. Notable lowland areas include the alluvial plains of Semliki and Rwindi-Rutshuru, stretching from Lake Edward's northern to southern shores. The steep Kabasha escarpment rises from Lake Edward's western bank, extending toward the Rwindi-Rutshuru plain, which is flanked by the massive Ruwenzori range (5,119 meters) to the east. Further south, the plain merges into volcanic lava fields leading to the Virunga Mountains, with prominent active volcanoes Nyamulagira (3,056 meters) and Nyiragongo (3,470 meters).
The province features two major lakes: Lake Edward and Lake Kivu. Lake Edward, covering 2,150 square kilometers with 1,630 square kilometers in Congolese territory, reaches an average depth of 30 meters. It supports a rich fish population, forming a vital economic resource for surrounding communities. Lake Kivu, the highest lake in Central Africa, sits at an elevation of 1,460 meters, with a Congolese surface area of 2,700 square kilometers and an average depth of 285 meters. However, its fish diversity is relatively limited compared to Lake Edward. Additionally, the Mokotos Lakes—Ndalaha, Lukulu, Mbalukia, and Mbila—occupy 86 square kilometers in the Bashali Chiefdom. The provincial river system includes the Rutshuru, Rwindi, Semliki, Osso, and Lowa rivers.
Volcanic soils, derived from recent lava flows, dominate areas near active volcanoes; these soils, while fertile in older flows, are less suitable for agriculture in recent deposits. Between Goma and Rutshuru, volcanic soils are fertile yet shallow, conducive to agriculture. Alluvial soils are common in the Semliki plains, originating from lacustrine and fluvial deposits, while older, humus-rich soils are found in regions with deeper, clayey substrates, abundant in organic matter.
Savannas dominate the alluvial plains of Semliki and Rutshuru, while shrubby, sclerophyllous formations are found on the lava plains north of Lake Kivu. Mountain rainforests grow primarily in the Rwenzori and Virunga massifs, while equatorial forests are extensive in the territories of Lubero, Masisi, Walikale, and Beni.
Human activities have markedly influenced the province's vegetation, particularly through establishing single-species plantations, mainly comprising Eucalyptus saligna and Grevillea robusta. These plantations, alongside community-operated village plantations, constitute the principal legitimate wood-energy sources for populations proximate to Virunga National Park. Additional species, such as Acacia mearnsii, are also cultivated, often interplanted with food crops to provide supplementary revenue streams for local populations. These monoculture plantations, extending over approximately 11,200 hectares, play an indispensable role in meeting the wood-energy demands of North Kivu's residents, particularly in Goma. In 2011, the EcoMakala project emerged as a geographically integrated REDD+ initiative to mitigate emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. Between 2020 and 2021, EcoMakala+ secured USD 1.3 million in funding, allowing North Kivu to become the first province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to capitalize on carbon credit sales.
North Kivu's climate is greatly influenced by altitude. Temperatures decrease with elevation: areas below 1,000 meters average 23°C, while those at 2,000 meters average 15°C. Rainfall varies from 1,000 to 2,000 millimeters annually, with drier periods in January-February and July-August. The region experiences four distinct seasons: two wet seasons (mid-August to mid-January, mid-February to mid-July) and two short dry seasons. According to the Köppen-Geiger classification, North Kivu has a warm oceanic climate, with an annual average temperature of 18°C and average precipitation of 363.6 millimeters.
Approximate correspondence between historical and current province
North Kivu Province is systematically organized into a hierarchy of administrative divisions, which include territories, cities, chiefdoms (collectivités), sectors, groupements (groupings), and villages (localités).
North Kivu comprises six territories. These territories are led by a Territorial Administrator supported by two Assistant Territorial Administrators, who facilitate the effective governance of vast regions, often remote or rural. Appointed by the Ministry of the Interior and Security, territorial officials are part of the state's official budget. They are responsible for implementing state policies at the local level, under the oversight of the provincial governor, who serves as both the President's and Ministry's representative within the province.
The territories in North Kivu include:
The province contains three cities—Goma, Butembo, and Beni. Each city is a decentralized administrative entity with official legal status and is led by a mayor appointed by a presidential decree on the advice of the Minister of the Interior and Security.
The traditional governance of North Kivu is organized into chiefdoms (known as collectivités) and sectors. These entities represent traditional forms of authority, where leadership is often determined by ethnic customs and later formalized by the state. The head of a chiefdom holds the title "mwami" (paramount customary chief). Chiefdoms and sectors are divided into groupements, which further subdivide into villages. Village heads manage governance within these smaller divisions.
Some notable chiefdoms and sectors in North Kivu include:
The frontiers of the Congo Free State were defined by the Neutrality Act during the 1885 Berlin Conference, in which the European powers staked out their territorial claims in Africa. The Congo Free State's northeastern boundary was defined in 1885 as "a straight line coming from the northern end of Lake Tanganyika and ending at a point located on the 30th east meridian and at 1° 20' south latitude; further north, the border is formed by the 30th meridian east." On this basis, all of Lake Kivu and both banks of the Ruzizi River were in the Free State.
In June 1909, John Methuen Coote started the Kivu frontier incident when he travelled southwest from the British Uganda Protectorate and established fortified camps at Burungu and Rubona on Lake Kivu. British troops under Coote withdrew from the Rubona post on June 29, 1909, and the Belgians occupied the post. After a series of incidents, the boundaries of the Congo, Uganda and Rwanda were settled in May 1910, with the eastern part of Kivu assigned to Uganda and the German colony of Rwanda.
Kivu District was created by an arrêté royal of March 28, 1912, which divided the Congo into 22 districts. By 1954, Kivu District had been split into Sud-Kivu District and Nord-Kivu District.
The First Congo War, which began in mid-October 1996, saw North Kivu become a focal point for intense military operations and humanitarian crises. The war marked the beginning of a campaign by the newly formed Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (AFDL), led by Laurent-Désiré Kabila, and the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA), under Paul Kagame, to depose Mobutu Sese Seko's regime in Zaire (present-day DRC). While the AFDL and RPA justified their incursion by accusing Mobutu of marginalizing the Rwandan Tutsi population and harboring perpetrators of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, alternate reports, including those from the United Nations Security Council, implicated both factions in the systematic looting of Zaire's mineral wealth and perpetrating massacres throughout the conflict. At the onset, North Kivu hosted a significant population of Rwandan refugees, estimated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to number 717,991 in October 1996. Refugee camps, including Kibumba (194,986), Katale (202,566), and Kahindo (112,875), were strategically situated along the Rutshuru corridor north of Goma. Additional camps, such as Mugunga (156,115) and Lac Vert (49,449), were located westward on the Sake route. These camps, positioned near critical transit routes and the Rwandan border, became focal points of military confrontation.
On the evening of June 27, 1996, a clandestine Rwandan unit allegedly infiltrated the Kibumba refugee camp in Nyiragongo Territory, resulting in the deaths of three refugees, two soldiers from the Contingent Zaïrois pour la Sécurité des Camps (CZSC), and three Red Cross wardens. By October, the AFDL and RPA intensified their offensive, bombarding the Kibumba camp with heavy artillery on the night of October 25–26, leaving an indeterminate number of refugees dead and obliterating the camp's hospital. Over 194,000 survivors fled toward Mugunga, while simultaneous assaults decimated Katale Camp despite initial resistance from Forces Armées Zairoises (FAZ)/CZSC personnel, ex-FAR combatants, and Interahamwe militias. Reports indicate several dozen refugees and one CZSC soldier were killed during the assault. By October 31, AFDL and RPA forces had reportedly executed hundreds of refugees who remained in Kahindo Camp. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights violations in Zaire, Roberto Garretón, later estimated 143 deaths at Katale Camp and between 100 and 200 deaths at Kahindo Camp.
As the AFDL/RPA offensive escalated, fear and desperation prompted some refugees to attempt repatriation to Rwanda. Between October 26–31, approximately 900 refugees crossed the Mutura border, according to UNHCR records. However, this exodus was perilous, with numerous reports of intimidation, coercion, and outright killings by AFDL/RPA soldiers targeting those seeking assistance.
The scale of the violence against refugees became evident through reports from local organizations. NGOs such as the Équipe d'urgence de la biodiversité (EUB), the Association des Volontaires du Zaïre (ASVOZA), and the Zairean Red Cross documented the mass burials of victims to prevent outbreaks of epidemics. From November 2–30, 2,087 bodies were buried in and around the Kibumba camp. Between November 30, 1996, and January 26, 1997, an additional 1,919 bodies were buried in the same area. At Kahindo Camp, 281 bodies were buried between December 1–25, 1996. At Katale Camp, 970 bodies were buried between December 1, 1996, and January 18, 1997. According to the DRC Mapping Exercise Report, many of the victims' hands were bound, and bodies were often discovered in public pit latrines.
By November 1, 1996, all refugee camps between Goma and Rutshuru had been dismantled. The Kibumba camp's survivors moved toward Mugunga, while those from Kahindo and Katale were scattered into the dense forests of Virunga National Park. Attempting to evade interception by AFDL/RPA forces, refugees wandered through the park's inhospitable terrain for weeks. The volcanic landscape, marked by lava fields, offered little access to drinking water, leading to deaths from thirst and starvation.
AFDL/RPA forces maintained relentless pressure on refugees. Checkpoints established between Mount Nyiragongo and Mugunga became sites of mass killings. Survivors reported that refugees intercepted at the park's exit were sorted by age and gender, with adult men systematically executed. The violence extended to makeshift camps within Virunga National Park, where refugees who sought temporary shelter were targeted. By February 1997, reports from local witnesses indicated that bodies of newly deceased refugees were discovered daily near the former Kibumba camp. One of the most harrowing incidents occurred in April 1997 near Mwaro, close to the village of Kibumba. On April 9 AFDL/RPA soldiers intercepted refugees attempting to return to Rwanda. The victims were imprisoned in a mosque and a former farm building before being killed on April 11. The number of victims is unknown, but accounts suggest the massacre claimed several hundred lives.
In mid-November 1996, the Masisi Territory became a critical theater of pursuit and systematic violence as the AFDL and RPA advanced in their campaign. Their primary targets were refugees—mainly Rwandans—and ex-FAR/Interahamwe combatants fleeing westward towards Walikale. These columns of escapees, slowed by exhaustion and the harsh terrain, established temporary camps in villages across Masisi Territory, including Osso, Kinigi, Katoyi, Kilolirwe, Ngandjo, Nyamitaba, Miandja, Nyaruba, Kirumbu, and Kahira. Survivors from decimated camps such as Mugunga, Kibumba, Kahindo, and Katale were disproportionately represented among these disparate groups.
The assault on refugees and Internally displaced persons escalated on November 19, 1996, when Mayi-Mayi fighters aligned with AFDL/RPA forces attacked Ngungu village. Backed by artillery, they indiscriminately slaughtered an estimated several hundred refugees and ex-FAR/Interahamwe combatants. Reports from the United Nations and local witnesses indicate that no effort was made to distinguish civilians from combatants, with women and children among the fatalities. The following days saw continued massacres. In Osso, an improvised refugee camp adjacent to a local farm became a site of mass killing. Eyewitness accounts documented the presence of 20 to 100 bodies in the aftermath, though the actual death toll was likely higher. In early December 1996, AFDL/RPA forces attacked a makeshift camp in Mbeshe Mbeshe, Katoyi Chiefdom, killing hundreds of refugees and Zaireans indiscriminately. Survivors recalled the brutal nature of these assaults, with camps turned into death traps as soldiers opened fire on unarmed civilians.
On November 8, 1996, survivors from Kahindo and Katale camps settled in Bashali Chiefdom, only to face renewed attacks by AFDL/RPA soldiers. Around November 18, these forces stormed a makeshift camp at Rukwi, killing an indeterminate number of refugees in a protracted series of raids that spanned weeks and months. In late November, atrocities were reported in Miandja, where AFDL/RPA units killed approximately 50 civilians, including 40 Rwandan refugees and 10 local Hutu Banyarwanda. Refugees who had established settlements at Karunda in Kirumbu village and on the Nyabura plantation in the Bashali-Mokoto groupement faced a similar fate. In April 1997, AFDL/RPA forces attacked a school in the village of Humule, near Karuba—roughly fifty kilometers from Goma—killing 53 refugees. Further violence followed in May 1997 when AFDL/RPA units intercepted a group of refugees heading to the Karuba UNHCR transit center, where they hoped to facilitate their return to Rwanda. On May 29, four people, including a child and an employee of the international NGO Save the Children, were killed in the village of Karuba.
In November 1996, Walikale Territory became a critical transit point and deadly trap for Rwandan refugees fleeing the advancing AFDL and RPA. Refugees arrived in the area via three routes: one from Bukavu through Bunyakiri; another through the dense forests of Kahuzi-Biéga National Park and Nyabibwe; and a third from North Kivu, passing through southern Masisi Territory and the towns of Busurungi and Biriko. While armed men in these groups often managed to escape, the slowest refugees—mainly women, children, and the elderly—became the primary targets of the AFDL/RPA's systematic attacks. On December 9, 1996, the AFDL/RPA forces unleashed one of their deadliest massacres at the Hombo Bridge, where they shot dead several hundred refugees. Many of the victims were women and children. In the following days, soldiers committed further atrocities near Kampala, a town close to Hombo. Refugees were burned alive along the road, while many women were subjected to sexual violence before being killed.
In Chambucha, four kilometers from Hombo, soldiers intercepted several hundred refugees, including a significant number of women and children, and executed them near the Lowa River. Victims were killed either by gunfire or by brutal methods involving hammers and hoes. Deceptively lured with promises of UNHCR assistance for repatriation, most of the victims' bodies were discarded in the Lowa River. By mid-December 1996, AFDL/RPA forces advanced on the makeshift camps in Biriko, located in the Walowa-Luanda groupement. Refugees here were surrounded by soldiers from Ziralo and Bunyakiri in South Kivu and Ngungu in North Kivu. Hundreds of refugees, including women and children, were killed in the Biriko camps through shootings or by being bludgeoned with hoes. Locals were forced to bury some of the victims, while others were discarded in the Nyawaranga River.
The violence then spread to nearby villages, including Kilambo, Busurungi, Nyamimba, and Kifuruka. In Kifuruka, located 10 kilometers from Biriko, several hundred refugees were reportedly killed in December 1996. During the third week of December 1996, AFDL/RPA units committed mass killings in Musenge, a locality between Hombo and Walikale. Hundreds of refugees were executed as part of a broader system of targeted extermination. A similar system was implemented in Itebero, where special units systematically hunted down refugees throughout December 1996. In Mutiko locality, refugees intercepted at checkpoints were transported to Mukito village under the pretense of being prepared for UNHCR-assisted repatriation. However, the victims were instead led to their deaths, being killed with sticks, hammers, and axes. Indigenous residents were coerced into participating in the killings and were later forced to bury the bodies. In the Nyarusukula district of Walikale, which had been transformed into a restricted military zone, hundreds of refugees were killed. Civilians were prohibited from entering the area, and most of the victims' bodies were disposed of in the Lowa River and its tributaries. In early 1997, more killings were reported at the Kariki makeshift camp, 13 kilometers from Walikale. Refugees who sought safety here became easy targets for the AFDL/RPA forces, and most of the victims' bodies were left unburied.
The Second Congo War profoundly affected North Kivu, as conflict erupted due to deteriorating relations between President Laurent-Désiré Kabila, Rwanda, and Tutsi soldiers within the AFDL. By late 1997, tensions mounted as Kabila faced allegations of marginalizing Tutsi factions in his government and favoring his Katangan affiliates. Other reports suggested that the United States provided military assistance to Rwanda in the lead-up to the war, ostensibly motivated by access to Congo's vast natural resources. A U.S. Army Rwanda Interagency Assessment Team (RIAT) was deployed to Rwanda in July 1998 to train Rwandan units. The presence of U.S. forces sparked controversy, as it coincided with the outbreak of hostilities in the DRC. American photojournalist and war correspondent Keith Harmon Snow asserted that Roger Winter, a key figure in the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, orchestrated U.S.-endorsed insurgencies in Congo and neighboring states, including Rwanda, Sudan, and Uganda. In July 1998, driven by fears of a coup d'état, President Laurent-Désiré Kabila relieved Rwandan General James Kabarebe of his position as Chief of Staff of the Congolese army, while also issuing an order for the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA) soldiers to withdraw from Congolese territory. These actions provoked Rwanda and Uganda to support a new rebellion aimed at removing Kabila from power. On August 2, 1998, a mutiny within the Congolese military, the Forces Armées Congolaises (FAC), was announced on Radio-Télévision Nationale Congolaise (RTNC) in Goma. The mutiny led to the formation of the Rassemblement Congolais pour la Démocratie (RCD-Goma), a Tutsi-dominated rebel group supported by Rwanda. On the same day, the city of Goma fell into the hands of RCD-Goma and RPA without significant resistance. Goma remained under rebel control for nearly three years, from August 1998 to January 2001.
On February 25, 1999, RCD-Goma and RPA forces massacred 45 civilians in Lukweti, Masisi Territory. Subsequent airstrikes by the FAC in May 1999 targeted Goma neighborhoods, including Mukosasenge in Karisimbi, resulting in civilian casualties. Around August 8, 1999, RCD-Goma and RPA killed at least 17 civilians in the village of Otobora in Walikale Territory, many of whom were displaced persons from the neighboring village of Hombo. On August 12, 1999, RCD-Goma and RPA killed 44 civilians in the village of Miano in Masisi Territory, predominantly women and children of Tembo ethnicity. Victims were targeted based on their ethnic origin. Around November 23, 1999, RCD-Goma and RPA killed an unknown number of civilians in the village of Ngenge in Walikale Territory, indiscriminately opening fire on residents. On November 24, RCD-Goma and RPA soldiers beat a group of senior figures in the village to death. The same soldiers "killed civilians in the neighboring villages of Kangati and Kaliki". On February 5, 2000, at least 30 people were killed by RCD-Goma and RPA forces in the village of Kilambo, Masisi Territory. A local NGO identified 27 victims.
During this period, members of the ALiR (Armée pour la Libération du Rwanda) also attacked civilians in Walikale Territory and Masisi Territory. In January 2000, ALiR forces killed approximately 100 civilians in the village of Luke, Walikale Territory, accusing them of collaborating with RCD-Goma and RPA forces. Most of the victims were killed with machetes or shot. On July 9, 2000, ALiR attacked a displaced persons' camp in Sake, killing 34–42 civilians, mostly women and children of Hunde and Tembo ethnicity.
On August 7, 1998, the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) took control of Beni without opposition. However, this occupation provoked substantial local resistance, with youth in Beni and Lubero joining the Mayi-Mayi groups. Strengthened by financial and military support from the Kinshasa government, the Mayi-Mayi launched attacks on UPDF convoys and engaged in violent confrontations with Ugandan forces.
These clashes were further compounded by internal rivalries within Mayi-Mayi factions, notably between Chief Lolwako Poko Poko's Vurondo Mayi-Mayi and Chief Mudohu's forces. Efforts by the RCD-ML (Rally for Congolese Democracy–Liberation Movement) to incorporate these groups into its armed wing, the Armée Patriotique Congolaise (APC), failed, leading to intensified violence. In August 2000, confrontations between Vurondo Mayi-Mayi fighters and APC/UPDF troops in Lubero resulted in dozens of deaths, including civilians. Reports indicate that 17 civilians were killed, and seven Mayi-Mayi prisoners were summarily executed.
In retaliation for Mayi-Mayi ambushes, UPDF forces launched indiscriminate attacks on villages suspected of harboring Mayi-Mayi fighters. These operations frequently involved mass civilian killings, destruction of property, and other acts of brutality. On November 1, 2000, UPDF soldiers reportedly executed between 7 and 11 civilians in Maboya and Loya, 16 kilometers north of Butembo, while setting ablaze 43 houses. Victims were either shot or burned alive. On November 8, 2000, close to the village of Butuhe, 10 kilometers north of Butembo, Vurondo Mayi-Mayi attacked a UPDF convoy escorting lorries transporting minerals. Similarly, on November 9, 2000, UPDF soldiers attacked the village of Kikere, close to Butuhe, killing 36 civilians with rifles and rocket launchers and systematically destroying homes and livestock. The UPDF's reign of terror in Beni included arbitrary arrests, torture, and the execution of civilians. Detainees were often held in inhumane conditions, such as being confined in deep holes exposed to the elements. Protests against these abuses were met with lethal force, such as in March 2000, when UPDF soldiers killed four civilians during a demonstration in Beni.
The Allied Democratic Forces–National Army for the Liberation of Uganda (ADF-NALU), an armed group based in the Ruwenzori Mountains, also committed widespread atrocities in Beni. In 2000, ADF-NALU forces kidnapped, enslaved, and killed hundreds of civilians. In January, they abducted over 100 people in Mutwanga, and in April, they attacked surrounding villages, forcibly recruiting children and enslaving women. Many victims endured malnutrition, physical abuse, and execution during captivity, with some forced to carry looted property over long distances.
In November 2002, RCD-Goma launched an assault on Bushimoo village in the Bashali-Mokoto groupement, killing an unverified number of people from the Hunde ethnic group. During the same period, Mayi-Mayi forces under Hunde's leadership retaliated by torching multiple Nyanga villages in the same region, resulting in further casualties and displacement. The cycle of violence intensified in January 2003, as RCD-Goma forces conducted coordinated attacks on the villages of Bushimoo, Kauli, and Binyungunyungu. Over three days (January 21–23), RCD-Goma troops indiscriminately killed civilians, set villages ablaze, and committed acts of sexual violence. A particularly egregious attack occurred on January 22 when approximately 15 civilians were executed on a bridge over the Osso River. On February 25, 2003, RCD-Goma forces orchestrated a massacre in Bushimoo and Kailenge, killing at least 44 civilians. The attack was deceitfully executed under the guise of a community meeting meant to introduce a new village leader—an ex-Mayi-Mayi who had defected to RCD-Goma. The atrocities extended into the Walikale region. In April 2003, RCD-Goma forces killed five civilians and tortured two women near Kabusa, approximately ten kilometers from Walikale. In June 2003, seven inhabitants of Lukweti were executed with bayonets, and their village was systematically looted.
The indigenous Twa communities in North Kivu suffered disproportionately during this period. Accused of collaborating with various armed factions, the Twa people were subjected to repeated attacks by both RCD-Goma soldiers and FDLR. Crimes against the Twa people included rape, arbitrary detention, and other inhumane acts rooted in both ethnic prejudice and superstitious beliefs. In March 2003, RCD-Goma forces gang-raped numerous Twa women in Mubambiro, near the Virunga National Park, an atrocity echoed in September 2003 in the nearby village of Mudja. Both incidents were marked by degrading treatment and indiscriminate abuse.
In 2001, the Beni and Lubero regions in North Kivu became entrenched battlegrounds as various factions, including RCD-ML, Mayi-Mayi groups, UPDF, and elements of the FDLR, fought for territorial control. These conflicts were characterized by widespread violence against civilians, including extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, and systemic looting. Under the RCD-ML's control, its armed wing, the Armée Populaire Congolaise (APC), was implicated in atrocities targeting civilian populations. In Kiantsaba, a village near Beni, APC forces killed at least five civilians and razed homes. Meanwhile, APC troops, in coordination with the UPDF, clashed with Mayi-Mayi militias in the village of Irango. During these confrontations, the UPDF reportedly committed mass killings, sexual violence against young girls, and extensive property destruction, including arson and looting. The UPDF's presence in Beni extended beyond military confrontations. For several years, Ugandan forces established a brutal regime, characterized by arbitrary detention, torture, and summary executions. Civilians were often confined in inhumane conditions, including detention in muddy pits several meters deep. North of Kanyabayonga, the FDLR targeted civilians across several villages, including Kayna, Mayene, Nyamindo, Kisandja, and Kiteka. The attacks often involved killings, harassment, and forced displacement.
During the Second Congo War, military control over natural resources, particularly coltan, became a lucrative enterprise for the Rwandan-backed rebel group RCD-Goma. Although a decline in coltan prices led to a reduction in direct Rwandan army management of certain mining sites, their vested interest in the coltan trade remained high, with RCD-Goma and other political entities actively participating. RCD-Goma facilitated substantial revenue flows from coltan; however, even greater profits were channeled to Rwanda, as military officials and Rwandan authorities diverted significant quantities of coltan across the border.
From January to October 2000, coltan exports from Rwandan-controlled eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo exceeded 445 tonnes, according to RCD-Goma's records. In late 2000, the organization implemented an export monopoly and declared 208 tonnes of coltan exports over the next two months. Accounting for both formal and clandestine transfers to Rwanda, annual production in the Kivu provinces likely reached between 1,400 and 1,700 tonnes in 2000. Estimates suggested that more than $60 million was directed to local trading houses (comptoirs) during the peak months of the trade, while the Rwandan army reportedly accrued upwards of $250 million over an 18-month period from coltan exported to Rwanda. These profits largely benefitted Rwandan and RCD-Goma military elites, business figures, and other individuals with ties to the Rwandan government.
The Rwandan army's extraction and transfer operations were organized and controlled by senior commanders stationed in key territories such as Walikale and Masisi. Checkpoints were established to monitor and restrict civilian access to mining areas, while major towns and airstrips became stockpiling sites for coltan awaiting air or road transport. To facilitate these operations, new airstrips were built, and military helicopters, along with contracted companies such as Swala Express, Bukavu Air Transport, and Kivu-Air, transported coltan from remote mining zones directly to Rwanda, where state-operated facilities were used to store the mineral. Return flights often carried arms and equipment back into the DRC. Civilian flights, which previously allowed local miners to sell coltan to local trading houses, were halted by military authorities to consolidate control over the trade.
Civilians in military-controlled mining areas were frequently coerced into forced labor, and even paid miners had to sell their output to army officials at considerably reduced rates. Additionally, Rwandan soldiers served as private security for foreign-owned mining concessions, receiving a share of profits in exchange for their protection. Although some coltan passed through local trading houses, the majority was flown directly to Rwanda, bypassing the DRC's export system.
Rwandan military officers and entrepreneurs linked to the government were prominently represented as directors and stakeholders in key trading houses in Goma and Bukavu, such as Grands Lacs Metals and Rwanda Metals. These trading houses collaborated with the Rwandan government's Congo Desk, facilitating the direct export of coltan to international markets. Despite the eventual downturn in coltan prices, military transfers persisted, as illustrated by October 5, 2002, seizure of 36 tonnes of coltan belonging to Rwanda Metals in Tanzania. The DRC government accused Rwanda Metals of looting resources from the DRC, though the company contested the claim, asserting the coltan was mined domestically. Although the Tanzanian High Court dismissed the case, the provenance of the seized coltan remains uncertain.
RCD-Goma, despite its self-appointed administrative authority, lacked the logistical and military resources necessary for extensive control over mining areas, as exercised by the Rwandan army. Nevertheless, it capitalized on the coltan trade by imposing numerous taxes and fees, including mining license charges, non-refundable deposits, export taxes, and a "war effort tax", which escalated alongside coltan prices. RCD-Goma also held a controlling 75% interest in the Société Minière des Grands Lacs (SOMIGL), which held a temporary monopoly on coltan exports, generating immediate revenue surges. In December 2000, the 112 tonnes of exported coltan brought in over $1.1 million in taxes; however, none of these funds were allocated toward public services like healthcare or education.
The monopoly was dissolved in April 2001 due to the Rwandan army's disregard for RCD-Goma's control, withholding of stocks by trading houses, and a decline in tantalum prices. Letters from RCD-Goma officials expressed concern over revenue losses due to direct coltan exports to Rwanda by Rwandan forces. Monthly exports, estimated at 46 tonnes and valued at up to $21 million on the global market. RCD-Goma also capitalized on its authority by selling coltan concessions, even those under the legal ownership of the Canadian-based gold exploration and development company Banro Corp or the DRC government. In February 2001, an RCD-Goma committee awarded Medival Minerals Ltd., a Swiss company, an 18-month contract for cassiterite extraction in various concessions. In eastern DRC, coltan is often mislabeled as cassiterite to circumvent higher tantalum-related duties. Under this arrangement, the committee received 20% of the sale price, with RCD-Goma providing security.
Civilians residing in coltan-rich areas such as Punia, Kindu, Shabunda, Masisi, and Walikale suffered from frequent attacks. These incidents involved both targeted killings and indiscriminate violence against entire communities. Villages were razed, and large areas were depopulated as residents fled to escape the brutality. For example, in early May 2001, residents of Kabale, in Masisi Territory, were forced to flee into the forest due to clashes between the Rwandese army and the Mayi-Mayi militia. When some villagers attempted to return, Rwandan soldiers opened fire, killing multiple civilians, including a young family and an infant.
The demand for coltan also led to the systematic use of forced labor, often involving children. Reports indicate that in April 2001, Rwandan soldiers forced children and adults to work in mining operations in Masisi Territory. Mining sites at Mumba and Rugeshe in the Lwundje groupement of the Osso Sector in Masisi Territory became scenes of forced labor, with soldiers using violence to compel local populations to work.
In one notable case, a Congolese human rights activist who went to investigate labor practices at a coltan mine was detained and forced to work alongside other civilians. He later recounted that up to 200 civilians, including a large number of children, were being made to work under harsh conditions, often threatened with bayonets and rifle butts.
The conflict over coltan resources also led to widespread displacement, as forces destroyed villages and expelled residents from their homes. Between April and October 2001, thousands of people were forcibly displaced in the Osso Sector around Mahanga when RCD-Goma and Rwandan forces sought control of mining areas. The displaced faced extreme hardships, with inadequate access to food, shelter, and sanitation, resulting in additional deaths due to disease and starvation.
In some cases, residents were gathered in inadequate shelters, such as a school in Mahanga, where they were left without humanitarian aid. Many of the displaced perished.
Several targeted killings occurred throughout the conflict, often motivated by accusations of collaboration with opposition forces or mere association with the coltan trade. On May 25, 2001, Saasita Babaoni, a Congolese employee at a coltan comptoir in Masisi, was killed in his office by a Rwandan soldier. Despite prior threats and complaints, Rwandan authorities failed to act, and the perpetrator faced no accountability.
Another significant incident occurred on August 28, 2001, when Rwandan soldiers detained a trader near Punia, forcing him to transport an RCD-Goma combatant and subsequently detaining him in a cachot souterrain, a pit used as a makeshift prison. That night, the trader witnessed the soldiers execute six other detainees, accused of collaborating with the Mayi-Mayi.
The violence and forced labor associated with coltan mining disproportionately affected women, children, and other vulnerable populations. Many children were conscripted into labor in dangerous mining conditions, with frequent use of physical violence to enforce compliance. Women and the elderly, often unable to flee quickly, became victims of targeted violence, as illustrated by the murders near Bongbenyama and Fakiri, where 20 elderly villagers, women, and children were killed during raids.
On August 19, 2003, DRC government decree 019/2003 offered Laurent Nkunda the rank of Brigadier General and command of the new Congo Government's FARDC Eighth Military Region, covering North Kivu. He declined. On May 26, 2004, General Obed Wibasira (RCD-Goma) was named to the position. But Wibasira was suspected of complicity with the soldiers in Goma who had triggered a mutiny in Bukavu in February 2004, and on January 23, 2005, he was switched with Gabriel Amisi Kumba, at the time commander of the Fifth Military Region in Kasaï-Oriental. Kumba was named as a Brigadier General when taking up the post. General Louis Ngizo, a former commander of the Rally for Congolese Democracy, was appointed a commander in November 2006. Brigadier General Vainqueur Mayala was transferred from command of the Ituri operational zone, promoted to Major General, and appointed military region commander in May 2007. Ngizo left Goma on May 13, 2007, his next posting not being known at the time. During late 2008, the FARDC maintained its dismal record in combat against Nkunda's CNDP faction, losing the Rumangabo military camp to the rebels.
The dissident Mai-Mai 85th Brigade, commanded by Colonel Samy Matumo, controlled the cassiterite mine at Bisie, just north of Manoire in Walikale, in southeastern North Kivu. The former RCD-K/ML also has fighters in the province; at the beginning of the transition [2002-3] the RCD-Mouvement de Libération president declared he had 8-10,000 Armée Patriotic Congolaise (APC) troops in the Beni-Lubero area of North Kivu.' This exaggerated figure seems to have been reduced to 'several thousand' (2-4,000?) as of early 2006, following demobilizations and men joining the integrated brigades.
The Effacer le tableau and Beni massacre occurred in the province.
Subsistence agriculture is North Kivu's most significant economic activity, employing over 90% of its population. Key food crops include cassava, maize, plantains, sweet potatoes, peanuts, yams, soybeans, paddy rice, cowpeas, and wheat, while industrial crops such as oil palm, rubber, tea, quinine, coffee, coconut, pyrethrum, papaya, and cocoa also thrive. North Kivu ranks among the leading producers of premium-grade papaya worldwide and, along with South Kivu, is one of the only provinces producing tea in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The province's agricultural activities extend into livestock, particularly in cattle, sheep, goat, pig, and poultry farming, as well as to the fishing industry, with abundant fish-filled rivers in Walikale and the western parts of Beni and Lubero territories.
North Kivu is rich in mineral deposits. The province contains a variety of deposits, such as gold, silver, monazite, cassiterite, columbo-tantalite (coltan), wolframite (tungsten oxide), diamonds, pyrochlore, zirconium, quartz, tourmaline, platinum, and phosphate, spread across different territories. Gold deposits are located in Beni, Lubero, Masisi, and Walikale, while silver is found in all territories except Nyiragongo. Rutshuru and Masisi contain cassiterite reserves, whereas coltan is mined in Lubero, Masisi, and Walikale. Pyrochlore—a mineral used in various industrial applications—is extracted from Beni and Rutshuru, with SOMIKIVU responsible for its extraction. Walikale Territory stands out as a major mining hub, known for the Bisie mine's cassiterite production.
Artisanal mining, a labor-intensive and low-technology approach, dominates the sector, particularly in Lubero's sites like Manguredjipa, Bunyatenge, and Kasugho, as well as Beni's Cantine and Mabalako. In Walikale, artisanal mining prevails except for Bisie, which stands as a semi-industrialized operation. Managed by South African and Canadian firms MPC and Alpha Mine, the Bisie mine represents a shift towards more industrialized methods, focusing primarily on cassiterite extraction. The Masisi Territory, notable for coltan extraction, also engages in semi-industrial mining led by the Congolese company Société Minière de Bisunzu SARL (SMB).
The province's economic infrastructure is a blend of essential services and transport networks that facilitate trade and daily operations. The Goma International Airport is the primary aviation gateway, while Lake Kivu serves as a vital transport route, connecting North Kivu with regional markets. The province's road network spans approximately 5,134 kilometers, with a combination of national, provincial, and agricultural roads, although maintenance challenges often hinder connectivity. Key state-owned enterprises (SOEs) like SNEL (Société Nationale d'Électricité) and REGIDESO provide electricity and water services, primarily to Goma, with limited supply extending to other urban centers. The port of Goma and its quays, operated partially by SNCC (Société Nationale des Chemins de fer du Congo), support riverine commerce, while private entities like Congo Maji SARL and Yme Jibu provide supplementary water services through standpipes and home connections.
Tourism is anchored by the ecologically rich Virunga National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its endangered mountain gorillas and diverse wildlife. This attraction, along with various nature reserves, forms the backbone of the province's tourism industry. Efforts to enhance local energy infrastructure, notably through Virunga SARL's hydroelectric operations around Virunga National Park, and companies like Nuru and Energie du Nord Kivu (ENK) developing solar mini-grids, aim to provide stable power, particularly for Goma and Butembo.
North Kivu's governing system encompasses political and security oversight, judicial and administrative management, as well as economic and financial administration.
The political governance framework of North Kivu includes provincial deputies. The provincial government is led by a governor and includes several members. Key policies, such as the provincial civil service edit and Order No. 01/012/CAB/GP-NK/2009, regulate local and provincial governance structures. Security in North Kivu is managed by provincial security forces.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) has established offices in key cities, including Goma, Beni, and Butembo, as well as across the six territories of North Kivu. The Provincial Executive Secretariat, headquartered in Goma, coordinates electoral processes throughout the province to ensure the organization of both direct and indirect elections.
The judicial governance structure is supported by the Groupe Thématique Justice et Droits Humains (GTJDH), encompassing both civil and military judicial systems. The Provincial Justice Division is responsible for managing penitentiary institutions, notarial services, and oversight of State Guards and Educational institutions (Garde et de l'Éducation de l'État). Judicial services are distributed through the Court of Appeal in Goma, several public prosecutor's offices, High Courts, Peace Courts, Commercial Courts, and military courts.
North Kivu's administrative structure adheres to the national constitutional framework. The province is organized into various Decentralized Territorial Entities (Entités Territoriales Décentralisées; ETD), comprising three cities—Goma, Butembo, and Beni—and ten communes, along with seven sectors. Customary leadership also plays a part in governance at the local level, consisting of ten chiefdoms, 97 groupements, and 5,178 villages.
Provincial administration is organized through various divisions that report either to the national government or the provincial government.
Economic governance has seen substantial reforms aimed at enhancing fiscal management and revenue generation. A steering committee supervises the province's public finance reforms, alongside key departments like the Budget Directorate and the General Directorate for Public Procurement Control (Direction Générale du Contrôle des Marchés Publics, DPCMP). Legal frameworks, such as Edit No. 002/2013, regulate provincial tax collection, and a directory of taxpayers has been created to streamline revenue mobilization.
The province's public finances operate through decentralized services, with national agencies like DGDA (Direction Générale des Douanes et Accises), DGI (Direction Générale des Impôts), and DGRAD (Direction Générale des Recettes Administratives, Judiciaires, Domaniales et de Participations) collecting revenues on behalf of the central government, while the Provincial Directorate of Revenue (Direction Générale des Recettes de Nord-Kivu) manages local revenue collection. The Planning Division coordinates economic and social development initiatives, working with partners like UNICEF on hygiene, water, and sanitation projects.
The central government maintains a presence in North Kivu through provincial branches of various state-owned enterprises, including SNEL, REGIDESO, SONAS, SNCC, FPI, RVA, LAC, OCC, SONAHYDROC, OR, DVDA, and others.
Demographically, North Kivu is ethnically diverse, predominantly inhabited by Bantu-speaking people, including the Nande, Mbuba, Hunde, Lese, Talinga, Mbuba, Pere, Tembo, Nyanga, Kano, Kusu, Kumu, Hutu, Tutsi, and Batwa (pygmies). North Kivu contains around 20 tribes or ethnic groups, and 60% of its population is made up of Nande.
In October 2007, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) warned of an increasing number of internally displaced people (IDP) in North Kivu related to the fighting there between the government army, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) rebels and renegade troops, including Laurent Nkunda's forces, and a buildup of military supplies and forces, including recruitment of child soldiers by armed groups across North Kivu. The UNHCR thought that there were over 370,000 people in North Kivu displaced since December 2006, and is expanding its camps in the Mugunga area, where over 80,000 IDPs were estimated. The brief capture of Goma by M23 rebels caused "tens of thousands" of refugees. The town of Sake was abandoned.