Travel safety

Most dangerous countries in Africa in 2026

African countries with the highest combined safety risk in 2026, led by Sahel-belt conflict zones and countries under blanket FCDO Do Not Travel advisories.

Last updated 14 May 2026 · How Warnely scores risk →

Most of the highest-risk African countries are clustered geographically in the Sahel belt (Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad) and the Horn of Africa (Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan). The driver in each case is active armed conflict, severe state fragility, or both. Several other African countries with elevated overall scores have geographically specific risks rather than country-wide ones.

These are the African countries with the highest combined Warnely risk score. For most of them, the FCDO and US State Department carry Do Not Travel or Essential Travel Only advisories that are more up to date than this static list.

How this list is built. Filtered to African countries. Sorted descending by Warnely risk score.

The list

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Somalia

95/100

Al-Shabaab terrorism. Clan warfare.

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Libya

90/100

Civil conflict ongoing.

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South Sudan

90/100

Armed conflict, extreme violence, kidnapping.

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Sudan

88/100

Active armed conflict since April 2023. Humanitarian crisis.

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Burkina Faso

82/100

Jihadist insurgency. Military junta.

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Democratic Republic of Congo

81/100

Eastern DRC has severe security risks. Kinshasa requires extreme caution. Gorilla trekking in Virunga.

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Mali

80/100

Military junta. Jihadist activity in north and center.

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Niger

78/100

Military junta since 2023. Terrorism risk.

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Chad

75/100

Lake Chad region insecurity. N'Djamena requires caution. Zakouma NP for wildlife. Very hot.

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Nigeria

70/100

Largest African economy. Lagos vibrant but challenging. Avoid northeast (Boko Haram). Business travel mainly.

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Ethiopia

63/100

Ancient culture and unique landscapes. Ongoing regional conflicts mean some areas are dangerous.

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Cameroon

62/100

Avoid Anglophone regions and Far North (Boko Haram). Yaoundé and Douala require caution.

Data view (click a header to sort)

Rank	Country	Region	Risk score	Risk tier	Notable
1	Somalia	Africa	90	Do Not Travel	95/100
2	Libya	Africa	86	Do Not Travel	90/100
3	South Sudan	Africa	87	Do Not Travel	90/100
4	Sudan	Africa	86	Do Not Travel	88/100
5	Burkina Faso	Africa	81	Do Not Travel	82/100
6	Democratic Republic of Congo	Africa	75	High Risk	81/100
7	Mali	Africa	81	Do Not Travel	80/100
8	Niger	Africa	79	Do Not Travel	78/100
9	Chad	Africa	78	Do Not Travel	75/100
10	Nigeria	Africa	69	High Risk	70/100
11	Ethiopia	Africa	64	High Risk	63/100
12	Cameroon	Africa	64	High Risk	62/100

The country-wide score is the wrong unit of analysis for several countries on this list. Nigeria is large and varied. Ethiopia has stable and unstable regions. South Africa's safety profile is heavily neighbourhood-specific. For trips to any of these, the regional breakdown in the country guide is more useful than the headline number.