Uganda is hosting over 1.2 million refugees, 332,000 of which are from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Since January 2019, 16,195 new arrivals were registered. In April, a 33% increase was reported compared to previous month.
Due to a recent increase in armed attacks since 30 March in Beni (North Kivu), tens of thousands of people were forced to flee their homes. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) anticipates an imminent massive influx of up to 20,000 refugees to Uganda.
Services for refugees and their host communities are overstretched in Uganda. The 2019 response plan for Congolese refugees in Uganda is only 2% funded. The World Food Programme (WFP) warns of an imminent break to food and cash pipelines. The looming drought could further aggravate the food insecurity of the refugees and their host communities.
To scale up preparedness efforts for the influx, UNHCR Uganda is calling on international non-governmental organisations and actors to step up their response.
