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Refugees of Uganda

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Uganda Map

Uganda is one of the largest refugee-hosting nations in the world,[1][2] with 1,529,904 refugees (as of 28 February 2022[3]). The vast influx of refugees is due to several factors in Uganda's neighboring countries, especially war and violence in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo,[4] and associated economic crisis and political instability in the region. Uganda has relatively 'friendly' policies that provide rights to the refugees, such as rights to education, work, private property, healthcare and other basic social services.[5]

Demographics

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Most of the refugees in Uganda come from neighboring countries, especially South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[6] Uganda also has refugees from countries like Burundi, Somalia, Rwanda, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan among others.[7]

Refugee Camps in South - Western Uganda

Refugee Camps/settlements

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Almost 50% of refugees in Uganda are located in the Bidi Bidi, Pagirinya, and Rhino refugee settlement camps, located in the northwest region of the country.[8] Additionally, South Sudan accounts for 62% of refugees in Uganda, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo accounts for 29%.[8]We have also refugee settlements in Uganda such as , KyakaII, Oruchinga, Kyangwali, Nakivale, Rwamwanja.[9]

Refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo

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As of the end of 2019, there are over 900,000 Congolese refugees being hosted in various African countries, with over 40% currently in Uganda.[10] The region of the DR Congo bordering Uganda is the place of origin for the vast majority of Congolese refugees.[10] The massive influx of refugees is largely caused by the persistent violence and fighting that has dominated the DR Congo.[11] Many refugees enter Uganda through Lake Albert in the Ituri province of the DR Congo, which borders the northwest region of Uganda.[12] Of the 900,000 refugees, almost 3% are children traveling alone; almost 2% are women at risk; and 0.2% are fleeing sexual- or gender-based violence.[10]

The presence of refugees in Uganda has had a positive influence on the rates of consumption and access to private education in the communities that host them.[13] This is due to increased channels of commerce in areas where more refugees are present, and the policies enforced by non-governmental organizations that allow for private education providers to be more common in areas with higher refugee populations.

Reasons for Fleeing

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The Kivu Conflict

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Further information: Kivu conflict

The conflict in the Kivu region of the DR Congo has persisted since before the First Congo War, and currently takes form as a conflict between ethnic groups with political actors having a major influence.[14] Armed groups from the Congolese Babembe, Bafuliru, and Banyindu communities are fighting with the Rwandan Banyamulenge, as Rwanda borders the Kivu region.[15] Many suggest that the conflict concerns control over land and resources, as Kivu is plentiful in minerals.[16]

This conflict has resulted in the displacement of over 200,000 people and the destruction of many communities.[15] Further, crucial facilities have been destroyed, including schools, hospitals, and clinics.[15] As of August 2019, almost 2,000 civilians have been killed in this conflict.[17]

Violence in Ituri

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Further information: Ituri conflict

The conflict in the Ituri province of the DR Congo is a result of fighting between the Hema and Lendu ethnic groups. This violence has persisted for years, though it recently worsened as the availability of weapons in the area increased.[18] Since September 2018, the Lendus have carried out an increasing amount of violent attacks against the Hemas, with crimes ranging from killings, rapings, and destruction of crucial facilities.[19]

During the summer of 2019, President Felix Tshisekedi of the DR Congo condemned the inter-ethnic group violence as attempted genocide.[20] In January 2020, the United Nations released a report declaring the ethnic violence in the Ituri province to be crimes against humanity.[19] Hundreds of Congolese seeking safety and stability cross into Uganda every day as a result of this conflict.[20]

More than 700 people have been killed in this conflict, and hundreds are victims of sexual violence.[19] The majority of these victims are from the Hema communities.[21]

The Ebola Outbreak

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Further information: Kivu Ebola epidemic

Since 1976, there have been 10 outbreaks of Ebola in the DR Congo, with the most recent one beginning in August 2018 and continuing into the present.[22] The current outbreak mostly effects the Ituri and North Kivu provinces, and the number of cases has officially surpassed 3,000.[23] In July 2019, this outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern by a representative of the World Health Organization.[24]

The outbreak has slowed in 2020, with the last recorded case being confirmed on February 17.[23] This is the largest Ebola outbreak in the DR Congo, and is the second greatest Ebola outbreak recorded worldwide.[23]

Reasons for Coming to Uganda

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Uganda currently hosts the greatest amount of refugees out of all the African countries, which may be due to their open-door refugee policy.[25] In fact, the country's government has made welcoming and caring for refugees an important part of its national policy.[26] Uganda's approach to refugees involves welcoming relatively anyone seeking refuge or asylum in the country, regardless of country of origin. They also allow refugees the freedom of movement and the right to pursue employment. Furthermore, refugee families are each given a piece of land so that they may benefit from agriculture.[27]

Uganda has supported the Democratic Republic of the Congo since the government intervened in the war torn country in 1998.[28]

Further information: First Congo War and Second Congo War

Problems faced by Refugees

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Further information: Refugee health in Uganda and Sexual exploitation of Ugandan refugees
South Sudanese refugees being served food. Many of the complaint of hunger due to the food rationing by World Food Program.

Last year,[when?] Uganda took in more refugees than any other country in the world. One of the major problems faced by the refugees is that most of these stranded people are children. Some of the challenges faced by refugees include agricultural productivity, information dissemination and distribution of goods.[29]

COVID-19 and Refugees

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The novel strain of coronavirus, named COVID-19, first appeared in Wuhan, China, with the earliest case reported on November 17, 2019.[30] By January 13, 2020, the virus had spread from China to Thailand, marking the first case of COVID-19 outside of China.[31] On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization officially recognized the outbreak of COVID-19 as a pandemic. By this time, the virus had spread to more than 114 countries and had taken the lives of over 4,000 people.[32] As of April 17, 2020, there are almost 2.2 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide, 55 confirmed cases in Uganda, 4 confirmed cases in South Sudan, and 287 confirmed cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[33] As healthcare professionals and researchers continue to learn more about the virus, various groups have come to public attention as high risk groups. One such group is refugees.

Refugees and otherwise displaced populations are particularly vulnerable because of the conditions in which they live. For example, many refugees live in camps or settlements with incredibly high population density and limited access to basic services. Refugees in camps and settlements also encounter difficulties in accessing reliable and accurate information due to a variety of barriers. Further, refugees around the world heavily rely upon the aid of humanitarian groups, non-governmental organizations, and governments; due to the pandemic, these groups will be focusing their efforts and finances on the virus.[34]

In late March 2020, the Ugandan government announced that it would formally suspend the acceptance of refugees and asylum seekers into the country as the number of confirmed cases increased.[35] Many fear the death toll from COVID-19 in Uganda will increase exponentially should the virus be introduced to the many refugee settlements. In addition, representatives of the United Nations Refugee Agency worry that the conditions of refugee settlements may enable the spread of the virus, as access to water is limited, and current food rations have been cut.[36] Ugandan authorities have recently found it difficult to ensure that refugees are complying with the health and safety guidelines implemented by the government in order to limit the spread of the coronavirus. Musu Ecweru, Uganda's State Minister for Disaster Preparedness, explains that this lack of compliance may be due to the fact that many refugees come from countries where the governments are not trusted; as such, submitting to authority is unusual and difficult.[37]

Problems caused by refugees

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Uganda, for all its hospitality, has struggled to handle the large inflow of refugees. These refugees come to the country needing medical care as many are sick or injured from their journey. This has placed a lot of pressure on health officials in the country. In Uganda, there is approximately one doctor to every 24,000 citizens, and one nurse per every 11,000.[38] This has presented challenges in caring for refugees. Initially, refugees used to be given some land to farm and take care of their families but because of the huge increase in the number of refugees, the country can not do it anymore making to difficult for refugees to feed themselves.[39] The presence of these refugees has not only made it because to provide land but water and shelter as well.[40] In part, the struggle for food by refugees has resulted from officials working these camps misusing the funds meant for the refugees to enrich themselves instead.[41] This has led to the investigation of some of these officials.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Uganda now 3rd top refugee hosting nation in the world". www.newvision.co.ug. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  2. ^ Titz, Christoph; Feck (Photos), Maria (2017-09-13). "Open Borders: Uganda Is the Most Refugee-Friendly Country in the World". Spiegel Online. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  3. ^ "Uganda: UNHCR Operational Update, February 2022 - Uganda | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. 8 April 2022. Retrieved 2022-08-26.
  4. ^ "200,000 flee DR Congo fighting to Uganda". Daily Monitor. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  5. ^ "8 things you need to know about refugees in Uganda". www.amnesty.org. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  6. ^ "Uganda Comprehensive Refugee Response Portal". UNHCR. 31 December 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
  7. ^ "Country - Uganda". data.unhcr.org. Retrieved 2023-11-11.
  8. ^ a b "Country - Uganda". data2.unhcr.org. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  9. ^ "SETTLEMENT". urrms.opm.go.ug. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
  10. ^ a b c UNHCR (November–December 2019). "The Democratic Republic of the Congo Situation". UNHCR Regional Update.
  11. ^ "DRC Refugees Flooding Into Uganda to Escape Armed Conflict | Voice of America - English". www.voanews.com. 15 July 2019. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  12. ^ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Thousands fleeing new Congo violence, Uganda refugee facilities dangerously stretched". UNHCR. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  13. ^ Kreibaum, Merle (February 2016). "Their Suffering, Our Burden? How Congolese Refugees Affect the Ugandan Population". World Development. 78: 262–287. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.636.5732. doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2015.10.019. ISSN 0305-750X.
  14. ^ "Rebellion and Conflict Minerals in North Kivu". ACCORD. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  15. ^ a b c "In eastern Congo, a local conflict flares as regional tensions rise". The New Humanitarian. 2019-10-28. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  16. ^ "Kivu: The forgotten war". The Mail & Guardian. 2018-09-26. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  17. ^ "DR Congo: 1,900 Civilians Killed in Kivus Over 2 Years". Human Rights Watch. 2019-08-14. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  18. ^ "DRC: IRIN Focus on Hema-Lendu conflict [19991115]". www.africa.upenn.edu. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  19. ^ a b c "OHCHR | DRC: inter-ethnic violence in Ituri may constitute "crimes against humanity" – UN report". www.ohchr.org. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  20. ^ a b "DR Congo president calls Ituri violence 'attempted genocide'". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  21. ^ "Killings and violence targeting ethnic group in DR Congo 'may amount to crimes against humanity'". UN News. 2020-01-10. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  22. ^ "Ebola | History of Ebola in Democratic Republic of the Congo". WHO. Archived from the original on May 28, 2017. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  23. ^ a b c "DRC Ebola outbreak crisis update | MSF". Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  24. ^ "Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo". European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  25. ^ "Uganda stands out in refugees hospitality | Africa Renewal". www.un.org. 7 December 2018. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  26. ^ Goldstein, Joseph (2018-10-28). "As Rich Nations Close the Door on Refugees, Uganda Welcomes Them". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  27. ^ "Uganda's Progressive Approach to Refugee Management". World Bank. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  28. ^ Clark, John F. (June 2001). "Explaining Ugandan intervention in Congo: evidence and interpretations". The Journal of Modern African Studies. 39 (2): 261–287. doi:10.1017/s0022278x01003615. ISSN 0022-278X.
  29. ^ "Uganda: What are refugees' biggest needs in settlements across Uganda? - Uganda". ReliefWeb. 8 February 2018. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  30. ^ Menokee, Dweepobotee Brahma, Sikim Chakraborty, and Aradhika (2020-04-02). "The early days of a global pandemic: A timeline of COVID-19 spread and government interventions". Brookings. Retrieved 2020-04-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  31. ^ "WHO Timeline - COVID-19". www.who.int. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  32. ^ "WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 - 11 March 2020". www.who.int. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  33. ^ "ArcGIS Dashboards". gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  34. ^ "COVID-19 and the Displaced: Addressing the Threat of the Novel Coronavirus in Humanitarian Emergencies". Refugees International. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  35. ^ "Uganda suspends refugee arrivals as coronavirus cases rise". The New Humanitarian. 2020-03-25. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  36. ^ "Fears in Uganda over coronavirus outbreak in refugee settlements". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  37. ^ "Refugees Defy COVID-19 Safety Measures in Uganda | Voice of America - English". www.voanews.com. 7 April 2020. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  38. ^ "Uganda Welcomes More Refugees Daily Than Some in Europe Annually, Charity Says". Voa News.
  39. ^ "At least a million South Sudan refugees in Uganda". www.cbsnews.com. 17 August 2017. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  40. ^ "Uganda's open-door policy sags amid crush of refugees from South Sudan". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  41. ^ "The U.N. found only 7,000 refugees, despite Uganda's claim that thousands more needed aid". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
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