58% of people lacking basic drinking water services in 2022 are in sub-Saharan Africa

In 2022, 703 million people were estimated to lack basic drinking water services globally. Sub-Saharan Africa accounted for more than half of this estimate, with 408 million people facing this problem. Central & Southern Asia comes next with 20%.

Source:

UNICEF, WHO

Period:

2022
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North Africa is the least hunger-affected region in Africa, with four of the continent's five least hungry nations coming from the region
  • There is a wide disparity in GHI scores across Africa, ranging from 6.2 in Tunisia to 49.9 in Burundi, indicating a stark divide in countries’ economic well-being.
  • Countries naturally group into lower (below 20), mid (20–34.9), and high (35+) ranges, reflecting varying levels of economic strain.
  • West and Central African countries like Nigeria (32.8), Niger (33.9), Chad (34.8), and the Central African Republic (33.4) cluster toward the upper end, indicating deeper economic challenges.
  • Extreme cases remain concentrated in fragile states; the highest scores — Somalia (42.6) and Burundi (49.9) — highlight persistent structural vulnerabilities, often linked to conflict and instability.
East Africa dominates Africa's Crime Index, but Nigeria stands out as the highest-ranked West African country
  • DR Congo had Africa’s highest criminality score in 2025 at 7.5.
  • South Africa ranked second at 7.4, while Nigeria occupied third spot at 7.3.
  • Kenya was the highest-ranked East African country at 7.2.
  • The gap between the highest (7.5) and lowest score (1.8) is wide — 5.7.
Africa’s Crime Index is highest in East Africa, while rising fastest in North Africa
  • East Africa has the highest Crime Index in Africa (6.02).
  • North Africa is experiencing the fastest rise in criminality (+0.57 since 2019).
  • West Africa remains one of the most exposed regions (5.49).
  • Southern Africa has the lowest index (4.88) but is still increasing.
  • All African regions recorded an increase in criminality between 2019 and 2025.
6 of the 14 countries with over 1 million displaced people are in Africa
  • Sudan leads globally with 10.1 million IDPs.
  • 6 out of 14 countries with over 1 million IDPs are in Africa.
  • Syria has the highest displacement intensity (26.2% of its population).
  • Nigeria’s 3.6 million IDPs are large in absolute terms but represent only 1.5% of its population.
  • DR Congo (5.2mn) and Somalia (3.5mn) continue to face chronic, multi-year displacement crises.
  • Non-African countries like Colombia (7.1 million) and Ukraine (3.8 million) show that displacement is a global issue.
Illegal lab-made drugs lead Nigeria’s crime markets with a score of 8.5 out of 10
  • Illegal lab-made drugs are Nigeria’s highest-scoring crime market at 8.5.
  • Six other markets score 8.0, showing broad criminal-market severity.
  • Human trafficking remains one of Nigeria’s most entrenched illicit markets.
  • Financial crimes also remain a top-tier threat with a score of 8.0.
  • Resource-related criminality is also severe, with non-renewable resource crimes at 8.0. Wildlife crime is not marginal; it scores 7.5.
  • Cyber-dependent crimes are lower than the top criminal markets, but still elevated at 6.5.
One in every five people in Sudan was internally displaced in 2025
  • Sudan has the highest displacement burden in Africa, with 10.1 million IDPs and 20% of its population affected.
  • Somalia follows with 18.4% of its population displaced.
  • High-intensity displacement is concentrated in conflict-prone regions like the Sahel and the Horn of Africa.
  • Burkina Faso (8.8%) and the Central African Republic (8.4%) show how smaller countries can face severe proportional impact.
  • Nigeria’s 3.6 million IDPs are one of the largest in absolute terms, but at 1.5%, the relative impact is lower than many peers.
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