COMMENTARY REFUGEES ARE HUMAN NOT A BURDEN

Uganda has been commended internationally for hosting thousands of refugees from neighbouring countries.Today, the majority of refugees in Uganda come from South Sudan, at 73%, and the DRC, at about 19% ofthe total number of refugees. The remaining percentage consists of Burundians, Somalis and others. As atJanuary 2018, the total number of refugees in the country was 1,411,794. The Government of Uganda hasalso announced that it “is considering a request” from Israel to relocate at least 500 African refugees, mostlyEritreans and Sudanese, from Israel to Uganda.

GENDER AND THE REFUGEE CRISIS

An October 2017 UN WomenBrief on the RohingyaRefugee Crisis Response inBangladesh, East Asia, painted, indetailed and grim exposés, thegender dynamics in this refugeecrisis. The Rohingya, an ethnicgroup a small percentage of whomare Muslims, face one of themost terrible humanitarian crisestoday. The UN High Commissioneron Human Rights described thesituation as a textbook example ofethnic cleansing.

GLOBAL REFUGEES WELCOME INDEX 2016

The 2016 Refugees Welcome Index, the first ever such index, showed several variances. Refugees Welcome Index measured levels of acceptance for refugees for the very first time. The index was based on a global survey commissioned by Amnesty International carried out by strategy consultancy firm, GlobeScan.

HOW PHYSICAL ASSAULT, EXPLOITATION AND SEXUAL HARASSEMENT FOLLOW WOMEN INTO REFUGEE SETTLEMENTS

Late in 2016, a heavily pregnant Anna Lakong fledthe civil war in South Sudan. Her husband belongedto one of the fighting groups, so he escorted her tothe border. He did not continue with the journey intoUganda but returned to South Sudan, to fight.

IS UGANDA’S REPUTATION AS A REFUGEE PARADISE AT STAKE?

UGANDA HAS HAD A LONGHISTORY OF HOSTINGPEOPLE WHO ARE FLEEINGUPHEAVALS IN THEIRCOUNTRIES. IN THE 1930SAND EARLY 1940S, THECOUNTRY HOSTED INNYABYEYA, KOJJA ANDARAPAI REFUGEE CAMPSEUROPEAN AND ARABREFUGEES DISPLACED BYWORLD WAR II, INCLUDINGITALIAN PRISONERS OFWAR, WHO WERE HOUSED INENTEBBE.

NUTRITION AND HEALTH ISSUES IN A UGANDAN REFUGEE SETTLEMENT COMMUNITY

According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), there is a clear link between nutrition and public health. Communicable diseases brought on in part by malnutrition are responsible for millions of preventable deaths each year. Mass population movements can result in high rates of malnutrition, sickness and death.

PROTECTING FEMALE REFUGEES AGAINST SEXUAL AND GENDER BASED VIOLENCE

Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) isendemic among the refugee communities,largely because of the patriarchal societythey come from. The January 2018statistics from World Vision Uganda’s West NileRefugee Response Situation showed that 82% ofSouth Sudanese refugees in Uganda are womenand children, and because of their disadvantagedposition in society, they face more risks of abusethan their male counterparts.

THE REFUGEE CRISIS - A CHALLENGE FOR UGANDA

By the end of 2016, the numberof displaced people around theworld had risen to 65.6 million,an increase of 300,000 on theyear before, and the largest numberever recorded, according to the UNRefugee Agency, UNHCR. To put thislarge number in perspective, one shouldnote that it is more than the populationof the United Kingdom or almost twicethe population of Uganda.

THE TRAIL OF TEARS

THE HARROWING PLIGHT OF SUDANESE FEMALE REFUGEES

Our writer, Brian Mutebi, undertook a field trip to Bidibidi Refugee Settlement in Yumbe district, at the Uganda-South Sudan border. The settlement is home to thousands of refugees from South Sudan who fled their country after the outbreak of civil war. In this article he compiled the harrowing stories of refugee women in the encampment.

THE VOICES AND EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG REFUGEES IN UGANDA

This article explores the needs and vulnerabilities of young refugees, who through sharing their experience have revealed anoverwhelming interest in continuing their education, a desire to work, and willingness to learn new skills.