East and Horn of Africa

Response in 2016

Conflicts and instability in the East and Horn of Africa continued to make it one of the most unstable subregions in the continent. For many years, the subregion has been characterized by armed conflicts, violent crime, extremism, communal violence, political instability, serious and large scale human rights violations and state failure. In 2016, UNHCR continued to respond to displacement triggered by conflicts, food insecurity and political instability in the East and Horn of Africa.
 
The increased violence and food insecurity in South Sudan generated a massive influx into neighbouring countries, in particular to Uganda. Despite the signing of the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (ARCSS) in 2015, the humanitarian situation deteriorated further when violence erupted in Juba in July 2016 and the conflict spread across areas that had previously been relatively stable. At year end, the South Sudanese refugee population was approximately 640,000 in Uganda, 339,000 in Ethiopia, 298,000 in Sudan, 89,000 in Kenya, 67,000 in the Democratic republic of the Congo (DRC) and 5,000 in the Central African Republic (CAR).
 
In view of the continued worsening situation in South Sudan, UNHCR and partners revised and updated their contingency plan to ensure preparedness in the continued high influx of South Sudanese refugees into Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda. UNHCR’s response to the South Sudan emergency has been through the provision of humanitarian assistance and protection-centered interventions while strengthening the self-reliance capacity of displaced people, with a particular focus on the most vulnerable people. Moreover, due to the ongoing conflict, there have been challenges in maintaining the civilian character of asylum in South Sudan. Substantial gaps remain in meeting the protection and assistance needs of refugees, IDPs and people at risk of statelessness in South Sudan due to limited humanitarian access in many locations and severe underfunding.
 
The Somali refugee situation has been going on for over two decades, affecting three generations of Somalis. There were nearly 1 million Somali refugees in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Yemen, and approximately 1.2 million Somalis displaced within Somalia. In October 2016, the High Commissioner for refugees appointed a Special Envoy on the Somali Refugee Situation, specifically to maximize efforts in finding solutions for Somali refugees and asylum-seekers at national and regional level and striving to enhance dialogue between Governments of asylum countries, Somalia and the international community to help maintain asylum for Somali refugees. In 2016, UNHCR assisted close to 33,800 Somali refugees for voluntary return from Kenya to Somalia. Insecurity, food insecurity and political instability in many parts of Somalia however continued to create obstacles for a large-scale voluntary repatriation. Nonetheless, UNHCR continued to ensure the provision of assistance and protection to refugees, asylum-seekers and IDPs. Due to inadequate funding, reintegration activities and access to basic services, education and livelihoods have not been fully implemented.
 
In addition to these two situations in the sub-region, UNHCR continued to seek durable solutions for the protracted situation of refugees from Rwanda while also attending to the needs of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Furthermore, UNHCR continued to respond to the situation in Burundi through provision of protection and assistance.
 
UNHCR remained concerned about the increased displacement, especially in light of funding constraints in the subregion. The low level of available funding needs to be urgently addressed in order to meet the humanitarian needs of people of concern in the sub-region.