Nigeria has ranked among the least peaceful countries in Africa for the year 2025, according to the Global Peace Index (GPI).
Contents
Sudan
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
South Sudan
Mali
Burkina Faso
Somalia
Central African Republic (CAR)
Nigeria
Niger
Ethiopia
The report, which measures security, conflict, and militarisation across 163 nations, shows that while some parts of the continent improved, several key countries have seen peace deteriorate further.
Here are the 10 least peaceful African countries in 2025, including their peace scores and global rankings:
Sudan
Score: 3.323 | Global Rank: 161st
Sudan continues its descent into conflict with civil war raging between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces. In 2024 alone, more than 6,800 deaths were recorded from internal conflict, and humanitarian agencies remain unable to operate safely in many parts of the country. Displacement and lawlessness are widespread, driving further deterioration in peacefulness.
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
Score: 3.292 | Global Rank: 160th
DRC remains one of Africa’s most unstable nations. In 2025, violence intensified in the east as the M23 rebel group seized towns in North Kivu, displacing over 400,000 people since January. Militants linked to ISIS also carried out massacres, including one in February that left 70 Christians dead. The UN describes the situation as one of the world’s worst displacement crises. Despite peacekeeping efforts, rebel activity and state weakness continue to fuel insecurity.
South Sudan
Score: 3.117 | Global Rank: 156th
South Sudan is one of the highest-risk countries for future conflict escalation, according to IEP’s conflict matrix. Internal divisions, external interference and a breakdown of public trust in state institutions have driven conflict deaths and displacement to high levels.
Mali
Score: 3.061 | Global Rank: 154th
Mali continues to face jihadist insurgencies and political volatility. A military-led government, the departure of international peacekeepers, and worsening human rights conditions have all contributed to Mali’s decline. The country is a hotspot in the Sahel’s broader regional instability.
Burkina Faso
Score: 3.016 | Global Rank: 152nd
Burkina Faso has become a site of extremist violence since 2015, with al‑Qaeda–linked JNIM and ISGS controlling around 40% of the country. In 2024, Islamist militants carried out over 259 attacks, killing more than 1,000 civilians, including a February assault that massacred 133 people near Barsalogho.
A major attack in May 2025 on the town of Djibo involved several hundred militants overrunning military posts and besieging the city. As of late 2024, more than 2 million people were internally displaced—the majority under precarious conditions in Ouagadougou—while roughly 6.3 million required humanitarian assistance across the country in 2024–25 .
Somalia
Score: 2.983 | Global Rank: 151st
Somalia’s security situation remains precarious. In early 2025, al-Shabaab intensified its offensive, recapturing territory and capturing towns like Adan Yabaal, with attacks occurring within 30 km of Mogadishu.
In May, a suicide bombing at a Mogadishu military recruitment center killed at least 10 people, underscoring the group’s reach. Beyond conflict, civilian suffering is severe: over 300,000 people were displaced since early 2025 due to a mix of violence and drought, while UN reports document attacks on schools, health centers, and civilians—especially children—amid the ongoing war .
Central African Republic (CAR)
Score: 2.912 | Global Rank: 150th
CAR remains deeply unstable, with armed groups controlling much of the countryside. In early 2025, clashes in towns like Nzoroh left civilians dead and hundreds homeless. Despite a 2019 peace deal, rebel activity persists.
Over 460,000 people are internally displaced, and humanitarian needs continue to rise. The presence of Russian mercenaries has raised fresh concerns over rights violations and further tensions.
Nigeria
Score: 2.869 | Global Rank: 148th
Nigeria continues to face serious and overlapping security crises in 2025. In the northeast, Boko Haram and ISWAP remain active. A deadly suicide bombing at a market in Konduga, Borno State, on June 21 killed at least 12 people, underscoring the group’s ongoing threat. The insurgency has displaced over two million people and killed thousands over the past decade.
Recently, in Benue State, suspected herders killed over 200 people in an attack on Yelewata in mid-June. Homes were razed, farmland destroyed, and thousands displaced. Though President Tinubu promised a tough response, rights groups say violence persists due to a lack of accountability.
Meanwhile, the military also faces heavy losses. In Niger State, 17 soldiers were killed on June 25 while attempting to clear out armed gangs from forest camps. These ongoing clashes highlight how stretched and vulnerable Nigeria’s security forces remain.
Niger
Score: 2.759 | Global Rank: 143rd
Niger’s security situation has deteriorated significantly since the July 2023 military coup. Jihadist groups such as Islamic State – Sahel Province and al‑Qaida affiliates have intensified their operations, especially in the Tillabéri region, leading to frequent village raids and massacres.
A March 2025 attack on a mosque in Kokorou killed at least 44 worshippers, and a June assault on a military base in Banibangou claimed 34 soldiers.
The Alliance of Sahel States, including Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso, has formed a joint military force—but insurgent attacks continue despite these efforts.
Violence has led to an estimated 1,500 deaths in 18 months, doubled from pre‑coup levels, and driven thousands of civilians into displacement. Ongoing jihadist infiltration has also strained ties with neighbouring Benin and raised concerns of instability spilling southward into Nigeria.
Ethiopia
Score: 2.688 | Global Rank: 138th
Ethiopia remains unstable following its devastating Tigray war (2020–22), with renewed ethnic violence flaring in 2025. In the Amhara region, the Fano militia, once aligned with the government during the Tigray conflict, broke away in March, claiming control over key areas.
In Tigray, internal divisions within the TPLF and violent power struggles have heightened tensions, sparking fears of a civil war revival. Some towns like Adigrat were seized by dissenting factions in early 2025, raising alarm over stability and prompting Eritrea to amass forces near the border.
Beyond Tigray and Amhara, other regions, including Oromia and Benishangul-Gumuz, have seen intercommunal violence displace about 16,000 people in May 2025, compounding long-standing ethnic tensions.
Internal displacement remains high—over 3 million people, including Tigray returnees and those fleeing ethnic unrest—while approximately 4.4 million remain displaced nationwide.
Ethiopia’s fragile peace underscores that despite the 2022 Ceasefire Agreement, instability rooted in ethnic and regional conflict still threatens national unity and civilian well‑being.
