RWAMWANJA, Uganda — For several months, Agnes Bulaba, a refugee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo living in Uganda, has faced the challenge of surviving without food rations that were once crucial for her family’s sustenance. Her children have taken to scavenging in local communities for any available food.
“Being an unmarried woman makes life extremely tough,” Bulaba shared her experiences. Some locals have treated them poorly, even hurling stones, but Bulaba’s priority remains providing food and clothing for her six children. To make ends meet, she often resorts to prostitution to support her family.
Uganda currently hosts over 1.7 million refugees, making it the leading country in Africa for refugee resettlement according to the United Nations refugee agency. While Uganda has a reputation for welcoming those fleeing from conflict, officials and humanitarian workers note that the increasing number of refugees along with diminishing international support has significantly stressed host communities.
Approximately 10,000 new refugees arrive in Uganda every month, with many fleeing the ongoing conflict in Sudan, while a significant number come from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Bulaba is one of the many residing in Rwamwanja, a refugee settlement located in southwestern Uganda. In this and other settlements across the region, refugees are allocated small plots of land where they can grow crops, gradually reducing their reliance on humanitarian food assistance.
Since 2021, consistent cuts in funding have led the World Food Program (WFP) to focus food assistance primarily on the most vulnerable populations. After their initial three months in Uganda, refugees are eligible for only a 60% food ration, which decreases to 30% after six months. Only fresh arrivals benefit from the full food assistance package, leaving a large portion of the approximately 99,000 refugees in Bulaba’s camp facing hunger and severe poverty.
In 2017, the Ugandan government, in conjunction with the U.N., organized a summit in Kampala to request $8 billion to address the surge of refugees from South Sudan. However, only $350 million was pledged during that event.
Recently, Filippo Grandi, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, visited Uganda to emphasize the lack of funding for refugee initiatives. Grandi highlighted the importance of the international community not taking Uganda’s generosity for granted and warned that the country’s resources are stretched thin, with funding continuing to lag behind actual needs.
He emphasized the necessity for global support to help sustain Uganda’s efforts to support refugees, urging donors and humanitarian organizations to work collaboratively with the Ugandan government to meet the requirements of both refugees and their host communities.
In Uganda, refugees are able to access the same healthcare facilities as local citizens, and their children have the opportunity to attend school. While this inclusion facilitates their integration into Ugandan society, it sometimes leads to conflicts over scarce resources; however, incidences of violence are rarely reported.
During Grandi’s visit, Hillary Onek, Uganda’s minister responsible for refugees, expressed the government’s need for support in helping refugees achieve self-reliance. He acknowledged that the host country feels overwhelmed by the number of refugees and mentioned several vocational training programs to assist refugees in acquiring sustainable skills such as carpentry, masonry, and metalwork.
“We are striving to be innovative,” Onek said, emphasizing the struggle due to dwindling funds for refugee assistance that fail to meet the basic nutritional needs of these individuals.
Regarding alternatives, Onek mentioned that refugees will need to depend on their personal skills and capabilities to survive independently.
On the other hand, Bulaba, who has been in Uganda since 2014 after escaping violence in her homeland with her two children, expressed her frustration at not being able to find stable employment. She has given birth to four more children, who often lack proper footwear and clothing. She laments the loss of the cash-for-food program that used to support her.
“To eat, we have to search for jobs, but there are no jobs available,” she explained, highlighting the ongoing struggles faced by herself and countless others in similar situations.
