Operations

Operational context and population trends

Malawi remains a stable country, with a new Government having been voted into power less than a year ago. However, in 2015 severe floods have caused displacement and food insecurity and have posed a major challenge to the new Government. It is expected that Malawi will remain a stable and peaceful country in the coming year.

Malawi continues to receive refugees, although the Government intends to relocate the refugee camp from its current location to a place identified in the border town of Kasonga, over 620 kilometres away from the capital, Lilongwe. UNHCR will be called upon to identify additional resources to set up a new camp and transit centre.

The population of concern consists of refugees and asylum-seekers mainly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). As long as the situation in the Eastern part of the DRC remains volatile, the refugee population in Malawi will continue to grow. Based on current trends, it is expected that the population will reach 29,000 individuals in December 2016. Only a modest number of asylum-seekers from the Horn of Africa and other countries such as Burundi and Rwanda are expected to arrive in Malawi.

Key priorities in 2016

• Strengthen good relations and partnership with the Government
• Prioritize resettlement, focusing on refugees with specific needs and vulnerabilities
• Ensure that RSD process is functioning and enhanced through capacity building activities and technical support
• Support the ongoing merging of the draft refugee policy and the development amendment bill.
• Continue to capacitate relevant government departments
• Maintain the provision of drugs at Dzaleka health centre and ensure that people of concern have free access to primary health care and other national services
• Ensure that food is distributed to all people of concern.