Goma city hanging by thread year after city fell to Rwanda-backed rebels

One year after M23 militants stormed into Goma, the rebel group still controls the main city in eastern Congo and is tightening its grip. The scars from the fighting between the Congolese army and M23 in January 2025 remain visible, but life has gradually returned to normal: Markets are functioning, and people are adapting, but there is no real economic recovery. Bank closings, followed by the shutdown of the international airport, have severely crippled economic activity, plunging thousands of households into poverty.

Rwanda-backed M23 is the most powerful of over 100 armed groups vying for a foothold in mineral-rich eastern Congo, near the border with Rwanda. The conflict has created one of the world’s most significant humanitarian crises, with more than 7 million people displaced, according to the UN agency for refugees.

Following a sharp escalation of fighting early last year, M23 rebels took over Goma, which remains in their hands today. In downtown Goma, the banking district is one of the most striking symbols of the new reality, with once-bustling buildings now shuttered. ATMs are out of service, and the bank signs are off.

That leaves people almost completely dependent on mobile phone money transfer services. It is a way to survive — but an expensive one.  “Today, we pay up to 3.5 per cent for each withdrawal,” explains Grace Omari, a resident of the Chaumage neighbourhood. “These are significant sums for families who have almost no income left.” Still, at the nearby Kituku Market, the city’s main trading centre, crowds were visible on Monday, the traditional market day.

Local boats docked at the pier, unloading food products from the surrounding rural areas, which are quickly displayed in the stalls. Seated behind their stalls, women were selling vegetables, flour, secondhand clothing and basic necessities. But their movements are mechanical, their gazes sometimes weary. Here, activity has never ceased, but it has lost its substance. Esperance Mushashire, 44, a mother of 12, has been selling vegetables for years.

She remembers a time when she lived with dignity. But that’s not the case anymore, she says — many customers only come to inquire about prices, and then leave. “We buy at high prices, but we hardly sell anything. Customers have no money left. Our children don’t even go to school anymore,” Mushashire said.

In the Mugunga neighbourhood on the outskirts of Goma, daily life unfolds with an almost resigned quietness. “The situation deteriorated,” said Agathe Hanghi, a local resident. “Before, I sold things, I earned money, and that allowed me to eat and get medical treatment. But now, there’s no money left.