Congolese refugees fleeing to Uganda nearly double to 8,000 in past month

Thousands are crossing Lake Albert by boat to Uganda, escaping horrific inter-ethnic violence. Refugee reception centres are being overwhelmed, as emergency aid is running short.

“More refugees are arriving into Uganda from DR Congo, and there appears to be no end in sight. This has caused a shortage of emergency aid, which threatens the health and lives of refugees in the settlements. Uganda cannot, and should not, bear this burden alone,” says Melchizedek Malile, Acting Country Director for the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).

Over 29,000 refugees have crossed from DR Congo into Uganda so far this year. Most are fleeing inter-communal violence, as well as the Ebola virus outbreak.

Desperate Congolese families are fleeing to safety across the border any way they can. Over 3,000 refugees crossed into Uganda via boat along Lake Albert’s eastern shore in the past month. While this appears to be the most effective method of escape, border crossings by vehicle and on foot are also ongoing in the Kisoro, Kanungu and Bundibugyo districts of western Uganda.

Refugee reception centres in Uganda are being overwhelmed by the new influx. In the previous month, the average number of daily refugee arrivals was 145 per day. Since then, the number of refugee arrivals more than doubled to 302 per day.

“With this new upsurge in refugee arrivals, we strongly urge donor agencies and the international community to scale up their support for refugees in Uganda. Arriving refugees urgently need shelter, food, clean water and sanitation. With more donor funding, more lives will be saved,” says Malile.  

The 2019 Refugee Response Plan for Uganda is asking for $1.03 billion for humanitarian aid, but only $147 million for humanitarian programmes has been funded to date. Previous funding shortages in Uganda have led to the closure of life-saving programmes. Without increased aid, programmes will fall short for critical needs such as food, shelter, clean water and medical care.

As Europe and the USA continue to turn away refugees and asylum seekers, Uganda continues to accept them. The small landlocked country currently hosts almost 1.3 million refugees, with most of them from South Sudan, DR Congo and Burundi.

“Uganda has some of the most progressive refugee laws and policies in the world yet their request for more aid falls on deaf ears, and aid appeals continue to be grossly under-funded. Wealthier nations need to act on their pledges of responsibility-sharing. Countries like Uganda are struggling to cope as best they can, and they urgently need resources to reduce the suffering of desperate refugees,” added Malile.

Notes to editors

• NRC has spokespeople available for interviews. 
• Photos of refugee families in Uganda are available for free use: https://bit.ly/2ZZkzzZ 
• The latest UNHCR refugee influx dashboard for DR Congo refugees arriving in Uganda is here: https://data2.unhcr.org/es/dataviz/85
• The Uganda Country Refugee Response Plan is available here: https://bit.ly/2Lv1Ic2
• UN aid funding statistics for Uganda are available here: https://fts.unocha.org/
• NRC programmes in Uganda include food security, livelihoods, water, sanitation, shelter, education and legal assistance.

For more information or interviews, please contact

Geno Teofilo | Regional Head of Communications| Norwegian Refugee Council | Nairobi

Mobile: +254 702 910 077 | Email: geno.teofilo@nrc.no | Skype: Geno.Teo |  Twitter: @GenoWorldview @NRC_HoA | http://www.nrc.no/