Around 375,000 children in the Democratic Republic of Congo's war-ravaged North Kivu province are missing out on education and are vulnerable to violence and recruitment by armed groups, Save the Children said on Thursday.

The charity said about 17% of schools are closed in the eastern province, where Rwanda-backed M23 fighters have been seizing swathes of territory since resurfacing in 2021.

"The situation is catastrophic," Greg Ramm, Save the Children's DRC director, said.

"Children are being denied their fundamental right to education, and the long-time consequences for their future and the future of the country are dire," Ramm added.

School attendance falls 'significantly'

As part of a lightning offensive the M23 seized North Kivu's major city Goma at the end of January, moving to capture South Kivu capital Bukavu in February, in an area plagued by decades of regional wars.

Goma and Bukavu have populations of around one million people each.

School attendance "has fallen significantly in North Kivu" since January "when 1.3 million students were enrolled to start learning", according to a report from groups including Save the Children.

The NGO said some 775 schools are currently closed across the province, with many converted into shelters for displaced families.

At 'grave risk'

Save the Children also said that children out of school in the province are at "grave risk of violence, including sexual violence."

"Children also face risks from explosive remnants of war, which remain in fields and villages," it added.