Lightning activity over an 18-year period between 2005 and 2022 recorded by the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN) in a 25 • × 25 • area of the Congo Basin is analyzed. In addition, data from the Lightning Imager Sensor (LIS) is used: between 2005 and 2014 from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and between 2018 and 2022 from the International Space Station (ISS). This duration makes it possible to consider an examination of the climatological trend of lightning in a context of strong global warming. The interannual evolution of the lightning activity on a global scale and at different time and space scales shows that the number of lightning flashes detected is significantly correlated with the average multiplicity (determination coeffcient of 0.92). Thus, this evolution can be mainly explained by variations in the detection efficiency of the WWLLN network. The study area is divided into five zonal bands of 5 • latitude and their contributions to the annual global lightning activity are analyzed over the whole period: (i) lightning activity increases in the two bands north of the equator; (ii) lightning activity shows small variations in the most active band south of the equator; (iii) lightning activity decreases in the two southernmost bands. The maximum proportion of lightning on the scale of the small areas (5 • × 5 • ) is found in the first southern zonal band (between 5 • S and 0 • ), entirely at the annual scale and in 60% of cases at the seasonal scale. In DJF and MAM, this proportion is near 100%, while it is more scattered in the two northern zonal bands in 94% of cases in JJA. The local maximum density of flashes is in the same area every year.