Christians in Africa face numerous challenges to their faith. Islamic extremist groups like Boko Haram, al-Shabab, and the Islamic State group target Christians. Tensions between Muslim and Christian communities, especially in the Sahel region, often lead to violent clashes. Governments in Eritrea and Somalia imprison and torture believers. Poverty and political instability have fueled the rise of radical ideologies that target Christians. ICC’s 2025 Global Persecution Index covered persecution trends in the DRC, Eritrea, Nigeria, the Sahel, and Somalia.
Despite these realities, Christians throughout Africa endure persecution with great faith and forgiveness. Please see below for news and project updates.
Our Efforts
Today, most of Africa’s population considers itself Christian, and the continent has more self-identifying Christians than any other continent. Still, Christianity’s growth in Africa has not come without its share of persecution. From Islamic conquests in the early days of Christianity to the modern-day rise of terrorism, Africa’s Christian communities have faced severe danger for their faith.
Hope House programs are a lifeline for underprivileged Christians facing persecution. Tailored to each country’s needs, they provide access to education, either as a primary means of learning or through after-school support, along with essential nutrition and care. In places like Nigeria, we even build schools in refugee (internally displaced persons (IDP)) camps, offering stability in the heart of a crisis. More than academics, Hope House creates a safe, nurturing space where children can heal, grow, and build a future filled with hope.
Generation Transformation (GT) equips the next generation of Christian leaders to rise above persecution. Through fully funded college and vocational training, GT empowers underprivileged students and young professionals.
In the Middle Belt, jihadist attacks target Christian farming villages, killing tens of thousands and displacing hundreds of thousands more in the last 10 years. Families who once lived off the land are now left with nothing, their farms destroyed by radicals intent on erasing their faith. Our farms sustain desperate communities.
International Christian Concern equips persecuted Christians in Africa with small business grants, restoring dignity, independence, and long-term sustainability. Many recipients have lost everything for choosing to follow Christ. These grants help them launch or expand businesses in fields like tailoring, farming, and carpentry.
We support an orphanage in the DRC that is home to more than 150 children whose parents were killed by Islamic terrorists (Allied Democratic Forces). We are rebuilding after a building fire and provide monthly food and medical support. We envision a vibrant future campus that includes safe dormitories, a kitchen, a dining hall, and much more.
Pastor Austin was evicted from his home after using it for worship in Gambia. With your help, we stepped in and built Austin and the community a church. Dozens of Muslims have now turned to Jesus. We are now securing a safe house for them as they’ve lost everything.
In the wake of targeted, brutal attacks by extremists, Christian families who survive often face a daily battle for clean water. With the help of a partner, we have secured wells for several villages. The most recent need is for a borehole at the Compassion Orphanage in the DRC.
Read more inspiring testimonies of faith
February 20, 2026 ICC News — A United Nations fact-finding mission for Sudan released a report Thursday claiming that the Rapid Support Forces, a nongovernmental militant group battling for control of Sudan, carried out a “coordinated...
February 17, 2026 ICC News — U.S. officials confirmed to the media that roughly 100 U.S. troops arrived in Nigeria on Monday, tasked with a mission to train and equip Nigerian anti-terror forces in their ongoing struggle against the...
February 13, 2026 ICC News — The Catholic Diocese of Wukari has raised an urgent alarm over what it describes as relentless and systematic attacks by suspected Fulani militants across Southern Taraba State, leaving more than...
February 13, 2026 ICC News — Mamove Village in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a once-busy trading center, was reduced to ashes on Feb. 1 as Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) burned dozens of homes...
February 12, 2026 ICC News — U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee, and Rep. Riley Moore (R-WV), with the support of other lawmakers, introduced legislation that would require the...
February 7, 2026 ICC News — At least 70 members of the predominantly Christian Tiv ethnic group are feared dead following coordinated attacks on multiple communities in Chanchanji Council Ward of Takum Local Government Area, Taraba...
February 5, 2026 ICC News — U.S. Rep. Riley Moore said he will continue to press for the protection of Christians in Nigeria following a meeting with Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang, as violence persists across...
February 5, 2026 ICC News — A concerted effort to rewrite, slander, or outright ban the Bible is happening around the globe. Some attacks are fully exposed and out in the open, while others are more...
February 3, 2026 ICC News — A Christian orphan taken from the Du Merci Orphanage in Nigeria and held by the Kano state government has died while still in state custody. The death occurred nearly 10...
January 30, 2026 — In a January 2026 report, the International Institute for Religious Freedom (IIRF) detailed some of the world’s top perpetrators of violence against Christians across five continents. The group, with the...
January 30, 2026 ICC News — On Dec. 18, looters attacked Itang Catholic Mission in Ethiopia. The incident is a casualty of the longstanding conflict between the Anyuak and Nuer tribes. At dawn, starting at 5:30...
January 29, 2026 ICC News, Project Highlight — In northeast Kenya, schools have increasingly become sites of vulnerability rather than places of learning. For teachers serving in isolated communities under the shadow of extremist violence, each day brings...
January 28, 2026 ICC News — In the early hours of Sunday, Jan. 25, fighters of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) killed 25 villagers in a brutal attack on Apakolu, a farming community in Irumu, Democratic...
January 27, 2026 ICC News — In the middle of the night, seven Christian men were brutally killed in a coordinated night attack on a mining site at Capitex, Kuru community, in Jos South Local Government...
January 22, 2026 ICC News — Terrorist groups continued their rampage of death and destruction through the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 2025, increasingly targeting children as weapons for war and abuse. Militia...
January 20, 2026 ICC News — Violence swept through northern Mozambique one week in late November, unfolding in a series of coordinated attacks that forced tens of thousands from their homes. On Nov. 20, 2025, armed...
January 20, 2026 ICC News — The territory of Lubero in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, has once again plunged into mourning after two deadly Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) attacks on Tuesday, Jan. 13....
January 20, 2026 ICC News — Nigerian officials said that 163 worshippers were kidnapped on Sunday when heavily armed bandits raided at least two churches during services. The abductions reportedly occurred in a rural Christian...
January 15, 2026 ICC News — By Dr. Greg Cochran, ICC Fellow In cooperation with the Nigerian government, the Trump administration recently launched a Christmas attack against Islamic State group strongholds in northwest Nigeria. Political sceptics panned the...
January 14, 2026 ICC News, Project Highlight — When Masereka Paul Karimu’s parents learned he had left Islam to follow Jesus, they chased him out of their house in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Suddenly alone,...
