As of 31 December 2020, a total of 1,446,378 refugees and asylum-seekers were hosted in refugee-hosting districts in Uganda. The people of concern are mainly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan. Of the 1,446,378 refugees and asylum-seekers, 81% are women and children while 23% are youth.
In March 2020, the Government of Uganda issued a directive indicating measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. Measures included closure of the border entry points, restrictions on movements, and lockdown. The Government also suspended registration activities, issuance of identification documents to people of concern and refugee status determination (RSD). While the borders remained officially closed for asylum, new arrivals continue to enter through porous borders fleeing insecurity and violence in neighboring countries. In July 2020, the Government demonstrated exemplary action by opening its border in Zombo District temporarily and admitting some 3,000 Congolese asylum-seekers. The Government also admitted South Sudanese new arrivals who had sought refuge within the host community. An incident of refoulement took place in December 2020, with 88 asylum-seekers returned to the DRC. UNHCR raised concerns recalling Government’s obligations under international law and at the same time acknowledging Uganda’s exemplary response in admitting refugees in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic such as at Zombo.
In mid-2020, the Government relaxed the lockdown and resumed its protection activities notably registration of new arrivals, issuance of refugee and asylum documents, RSD processing and border monitoring. Following the resumption of the activities, the Refugee Eligibility Committee (REC) held seven sessions in the settlements in which 3,980 asylum applications were adjudicated. The overall recognition rate was 90% and there was a significant improvement in the recognition of asylum-seekers from Eritrean (64% in 2019 and 82% in 2020) and those with gender-based claims. Meanwhile, the Refugee Appeals Board (RAB), held two sessions in the settlements and a total of 67 cases were reviewed. UNHCR continued to participate actively in the REC and RAB sessions as well as provided technical support and capacity building of key stakeholders on RSD.
UNHCR continued to strengthen community-based protection in the settlements through empowerment of People of concern, provision of material support, trainings and sensitization. Complaints and feedback mechanisms as well as GBV prevention and response were also strengthened through community-based approaches including remote case monitoring. Access to justice was also strengthened through support of legal aid clinics, mobile courts sessions, police, witnesses, legal representation of People of concern, and capacity building of law enforcement and judiciary.
Regarding durable solutions, prospects for voluntary repatriation for the majority of refugees was not feasible save for 231 Burundian refugees, for whom UNHCR and the Government facilitated their return to Burundi in safety and with dignity in 2020. A total of 874 refugees from settlements were submitted for resettlement and 698 departed.
On education, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Sports and partners, UNHCR supported remote education of refugee students through provision of radios and scholastic materials.
The crude mortality rate was 0.1/1,000/month (Std < 0.75), while under-five mortality rate was 0.1/1,000/month (Std <1.5). The leading cause of death among under-fives was malaria accounting for 24% followed by neonatal death contributing 18 % and lower respiratory tract infections at 14%. There were 1,604,772 Out-Patient Department (OPD) consultations of which 24% were to nationals. Malaria contributed to 42% of all OPD consultations and 54% of all inpatient admissions. The modern contraceptive prevalence rate increased from 14.5% to 19.2% with 17,925 new users reported. Deliveries at the health facilities remained stable at 94% and antenatal at 90%.