News comment: UN High Commissioner for Refugees calls for global support as more people flee to Uganda

KAMPALA – Uganda, home to the largest number of refugees in Africa, remains an example of how the inclusion of refugees into public services improves their lives and those of the communities hosting them. I am consistently impressed by the generosity of the Ugandan people and the refugee policies of the Government.

The emergencies in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are driving more people to seek refuge in the country. At the Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement, recently arrived Congolese refugees told me of their harrowing journeys, facing brutal, unimaginable violence, barely escaping alive. Now they have found safety, they urgently need humanitarian aid and a chance to heal.

For the refugee families I met who have been living in Rwamwanja for several years, Uganda’s policies have opened up important avenues for self-reliance. Granting refugees access to land, schooling, health care, vocational training and jobs boosts the local economy for everyone, including Ugandans. This model enables refugees to meaningfully contribute to society and it should be an inspiration for others.

But we should not take Uganda’s generosity and the global public good it provides for granted. Services here are overstretched. Natural resources are limited, and financial support is not keeping pace with the needs.

Uganda offers refuge to over 1.7 million people mainly fleeing the DRC, Sudan and South Sudan, and that number is growing. The approximately 10,000 new arrivals entering the country each month place further strain on communities, making peaceful coexistence a challenge.

Thanks to development partners like the World Bank, Uganda has been able to maintain its global leadership in refugee policies, but we cannot lose momentum. More international support is urgently needed to sustain Uganda’s commitment to refugees.

Donors, humanitarian partners, development actors and the private sector must come together with the government to address the needs of refugees and the generous communities hosting them, in line with the pledges made at the Global Refugee Forum. Uganda cannot do it alone – a collective response is needed for this inclusive model to be truly sustainable.

For more information on this topic, please contact:

• In Kampala, Frank Walusimbi, [email protected], +256 772 701140
• In Nairobi (regional), Faith Kasina, [email protected], +254 113 427 094
• In Geneva, Olga Sarrado, [email protected], +41 79 740 2307