Low funding puts strain on the Ugandan refugee model

From Kiev to Khartoum, conflict is on the rise.  In the face of instability, Uganda has for decades been an example of what it means to respect, protect, and fulfil the rights of people fleeing crises. The country has provided a crisis response that is welcoming, progressive and inclusive. With over 1.5 million refugees, Uganda remains the country hosting the highest number of refugees in Africa. The rest of the world is yet to match up to its open-door policy, where refugees live and work freely, receive land to settle and enjoy the same social amenities as Ugandans.

One would think that a refugee model so progressive, inclusive, and lauded by the international community would have all the funding it needs to remain sustainable. However, the reality is far from this. For years, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), has struggled to secure enough resources to meet the needs of refugees in Uganda. Even with the support of key donors such as the US, who has provided nearly half of all the funding to WFP Uganda’s refugee response in the last 20 years, WFP struggles to support refugees to meet their basic food needs.

The last time WFP was able to provide a full ration to refugees in Uganda was in early 2020.  In April 2020, due to declining resources, rations had to be reduced to 70 percent. Further cuts came in February 2021 when the rations went down to 60 percent. More ration adjustments came in November 2021 where WFP worked with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Uganda government to group settlements according to levels of need. Some settlements had their rations reduced to 40 per cent, others were maintained at 60 percent while the most vulnerable settlements saw their rations increase to 70 percent.

Blanket reductions across a settlement saw some of the most vulnerable refugees suffer disproportionately. WFP Uganda again worked with UNHCR and the government to find a way to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable refugees. WFP is now, under its third phase of prioritisation, moving to give support to refugees according to the levels of households across all settlements for the first time.

Refugees in the most vulnerable households will receive the highest possible ration that the available funding can provide. The moderately vulnerable refugees will receive a reduced ration and be supported with livelihood interventions that can lead them to self-reliance. The least vulnerable will be taken off food assistance.

Continued monitoring and documentation will ensure that refugees who slip back into vulnerability receive the support they need while an appeal process will make sure that the most vulnerable refugees are not left out. To successfully implement this approach, WFP needs $137 million for the rest of the year. This would ensure the most vulnerable receive 70 percent ration while the moderately vulnerable received 40 percent.

By prioritising the most vulnerable and supporting self-reliance initiatives, we can ensure that people fleeing crises not only receive emergency support but also, in line with the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework, are enabled to build a decent livelihood that can lead to long-term resilience. It is important that Uganda’s refugee response is supported to remain sustainable and holistically address the needs of refugees.

It is true that there are many crises world over. The Uganda response is in many ways competing for resources with other crises within and outside the region. The Horn of Africa hunger crisis, the earthquake in Syria and Turkey, as well as the war in Ukraine and now the conflict in Sudan are but some of the emerging crises that the world has had to respond to, even as protracted ones such as the Uganda refugee response also need support. Continued conflict and climate crises that have led to refugee influxes has not helped the situation in Uganda, and the response remains strained.

It is important that all people hit by crisis, no matter where they are, receive adequate support to rebuild their lives. It is time for the international community to step out to support a country like Uganda that, even in the face of enormous resource strain, chooses to embody Ubuntu and keep its doors open to those who need a new home and a chance to rebuild their lives.

Mr Abdirahman Meygag is the Country Representative of the United Nations World Food Programme Uganda