In a world increasingly driven by the quest for strategic resources to power technological and environmental advancements, conflict-ridden African states are navigating complex terrains of international diplomacy, internal strife, and economic exploitation. The inception of the G7+ Rapid Response Advisory Centre in September 2025 marks a transformative moment, embodying Pan-Africanist ideals of collective empowerment and self-determination. This coalition of 20 nations, predominantly from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, offers immediate, no-cost advisory assistance to member states embroiled in urgent national disputes or negotiations over natural resources and infrastructure, transitioning to sustained expert support. By equipping these countries with tools to comprehend the long-term economic ramifications of deals, the Centre counters historical patterns of disadvantageous agreements with multinational corporations. Centering on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sudan—two resource-abundant yet profoundly unstable nations—this expanded analysis delves into their intertwined histories, ongoing conflicts, and prospective trajectories. Through a comparative lens, it highlights shared vulnerabilities, such as ethnic fragmentation and external meddling, while underscoring divergences in conflict drivers and resolution approaches, all within a framework that champions Pan-African solidarity as a bulwark against neocolonial influences.
Weaving Historical Threads: Pan-Africanist Insights into the Origins and Endurance of Conflicts
The historical tapestries of conflict in the DRC and Sudan are woven from colonial impositions that fragmented societies, fostering enduring divisions that both internal elites and external powers have exploited. In the DRC, the 1884-1885 Berlin Conference arbitrarily carved out a vast territory under Belgian rule, amalgamating over 200 ethnic groups without regard for cultural or linguistic affinities. This set the stage for post-independence chaos, where Cold War superpowers—such as the United States backing Mobutu Sese Seko—fueled proxy wars to secure access to uranium, cobalt, and other minerals vital for nuclear and industrial pursuits. The resulting First (1996-1997) and Second (1998-2003) Congo Wars, involving up to nine African nations, claimed over five million lives, embedding a cycle of militia violence in the east. Groups like the M23, formed in 2012 from disaffected Tutsi soldiers claiming discrimination, reflect these deep-seated grievances.
Sudan’s narrative mirrors this colonial fragmentation but diverges in its emphasis on identity-based schisms. British-Egyptian condominium rule from 1899 to 1956 entrenched a north-south divide, privileging Arab-Muslim elites in Khartoum while marginalizing African-Christian and animist populations in the south and west. Post-independence, this manifested in two civil wars (1955-1972 and 1983-2005) over oil resources, culminating in South Sudan’s secession in 2011. The Darfur conflict from 2003, involving government-backed Janjaweed militias (precursors to the Rapid Support Forces or RSF), highlighted ethnic targeting of non-Arab groups amid resource disputes over arable land and water. The current war, erupting in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF under General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), stems from failed power-sharing after the 2019 overthrow of Omar al-Bashir, evolving into a scramble for gold mines, trade routes, and urban control.
Comparatively, both nations exhibit Pan-Africanist critiques of external exploitation: the DRC’s mineral wealth (holding 70% of global cobalt) parallels Sudan’s gold and oil reserves, drawing predatory interests that perpetuate instability. Pan-Africanist thinkers, such as Frantz Fanon and Amílcar Cabral, would argue that these enduring conflicts stem from neocolonial structures that undermine African unity. They advocate for indigenous reconciliation models, such as community-based truth commissions or elder councils, to heal ethnic rifts, rather than relying on Western-mediated pacts that often prioritize resource extraction over sovereignty.
Advancing Peace Initiatives: Innovative Diplomacy and Enduring Challenges in Volatile Landscapes
Contemporary peace efforts in the DRC and Sudan reveal a blend of African-led innovations and persistent obstacles, where on-ground violations and geopolitical rivalries frequently undermine diplomatic breakthroughs. In the DRC, the M23’s resurgence in early 2025, capturing swathes of eastern territory, including parts of Goma, has intensified regional tensions, exacerbating the displacement of over 1.6 million people this year alone. Key initiatives include the merged Nairobi and Luanda Processes under the East African Community (EAC) and Southern African Development Community (SADC), focusing on disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) programs. The Doha-mediated talks, facilitated by Qatar, achieved a milestone in July 2025 with the Declaration of Principles, followed by an agreement in October 2025 establishing a joint ceasefire monitoring mechanism involving Congolese, M23, and international observers. This body aims to verify a permanent truce, incorporating U.S. oversight and AU participation, while addressing refugee repatriation and community reconciliation. However, clashes persist, such as recent M23 engagements in South Kivu and North Kivu, where pro-government Wazalendo militias have repelled advances, highlighting implementation gaps amid accusations of truce breaches.
Sudan’s diplomatic landscape is equally fraught, with the 2023 Jeddah talks yielding fragile ceasefires that collapsed amid RSF offensives in Darfur and SAF counterstrikes in Khartoum. By mid-2025, the conflict had displaced over 10 million, with ethnic violence in regions like Kordofan drawing in tribal militias. The African Union’s High-Level Panel and U.S.-led Geneva dialogues emphasize inclusive civilian transitions, yet mutual distrust prevails, as evidenced by RSF drone strikes in El Fasher killing dozens, including children, and SAF airstrikes in RSF-held areas. Southern battle lines underscore control over choke points, such as oil fields and supply routes, with SAF making limited advances.
A comparative examination reveals synergies and contrasts: Both conflicts feature innovative mechanisms—the DRC’s monitoring body echoes Sudan’s proposed verification teams—yet suffer from enforcement challenges, with external backers complicating neutrality. The DRC benefits from stronger regional frameworks, such as the 2013 Addis Ababa Agreement, which promotes cross-border cooperation. In contrast, Sudan’s efforts are hindered by fragmented armed actors, making unified pacts difficult to achieve. Persistent hurdles include arms proliferation, resource looting, and climate-exacerbated scarcities, such as droughts fueling pastoralist clashes in Sudan versus floods displacing miners in the DRC. Advancing peace requires bolstering African institutions, such as the AU and IGAD, by integrating local ceasefires with broader political reforms to foster trust and prevent relapse into violence.
Steering Through USAID’s Shifting Priorities: Harmonizing Aid Reductions with Urgent Humanitarian Needs
The evolving mandate of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in conflict zones highlights a delicate balance between fiscal retrenchment and life-saving interventions, with profound implications in the DRC and Sudan. In the DRC, USAID’s longstanding support for water, health, and governance initiatives has been disrupted by early 2025 funding freezes and cuts, stemming from U.S. domestic policy realignments. This has halted projects like those by Mercy Corps in Goma, leading to chronic water shortages affecting millions and heightening cholera risks, with outbreaks claiming lives as clinics shutter. The suspension, initially a 90-day hold, risks permanence, eroding trust with communities and straining autonomy in vital sectors amid M23 offensives that destroy infrastructure.
In Sudan, similar cuts have amplified a humanitarian catastrophe, where USAID’s emergency food and medical aid constituted a significant portion of official development assistance. With 60% of the population in acute need, funding gaps have left famine looming, particularly in RSF-besieged areas like El Fasher, where airstrikes compound malnutrition and displacement. The rollback has forced reliance on underfunded local actors, increasing insecurity and access barriers, as seen in shuttered programs in Jonglei State, triggering preventable deaths.
Comparatively, USAID’s impacts manifest differently: in the DRC, cuts exacerbate infrastructure deficits in the mineral-rich east, enabling militia exploitation, while in Sudan, they intensify food insecurity in the agrarian west and south, where gold mining sustains fighters. Both scenarios highlight dependency vulnerabilities, with aid politicization fostering corruption and elite capture. Navigating forward requires USAID to pivot toward resilient, community-driven models—such as solar-powered water systems in the DRC or agricultural cooperatives in Sudan—while coordinating with Pan-African entities like the G7+ Centre to build negotiation skills, reducing reliance on volatile foreign aid, and promoting equitable resource management.
Charting Humanitarian Futures: Strategies for Aid and Sustainable Development
Envisioning humanitarian pathways for the DRC and Sudan necessitates holistic strategies that bridge immediate relief with long-term prosperity, leveraging Pan-Africanist principles to transform conflict into collaborative growth. In the DRC, the G7+ Centre’s advisory role could revolutionize mining pacts, ensuring fair shares from cobalt and copper reserves amid global green energy demands, while prioritizing displaced populations through secure aid corridors to combat sexual violence and child soldier recruitment. Sudan’s future hinges on unblocking humanitarian access amid RSF-SAF blockades, with a focus on famine prevention through cross-border partnerships with Chad and Ethiopia for refugee support and trade revival.
Challenges converge in both: climate stressors—floods eroding the DRC’s farmlands, and droughts sparking herder-farmer clashes in Sudan—interact with illicit resource flows that fund militias, demanding integrated responses such as climate-resilient agriculture and digital monitoring of disputes. Compared to the DRC’s regional entanglements, Sudan’s need for civilian-led transitions to dismantle paramilitary economies contrasts with the requirement for enhanced peacekeeping via SADC deployments. Prospects brighten through debt relief, freeing funds for education and health, alongside African-led tech innovations for conflict early warning. By harnessing the G7+ initiative’s rapid support, these nations can assert sovereignty, forging a future where humanitarian aid evolves into self-sustaining development, embodying Pan-African unity in pursuit of dignity and peace.
