Today the Commission announced an aid package of €34 million for displaced people in Uganda and Kenya. "Kenya and Uganda are among Africa's major hosts of refugees, with millions urgently needing assistance. The EU stands in solidarity and is committed to support the most vulnerable refugees. Our new funding will help both those already displaced and the new arrivals into Kenya and Uganda," said Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides. With nearly 1.5 million refugees - mostly from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo - Uganda is the largest refugee host country in Africa. Out of the aid package announced today, €24 million will go to Uganda, prioritising emergency situations and new arrivals among displaced populations with a special focus on refugees from South Sudan and the increasing influx of Congolese refugees. EU aid will provide emergency healthcare, food assistance, water and sanitation, protection, and education in emergencies through accelerated learning programmes for children whose education has been disrupted by conflict and displacement. Refugees in Uganda are free to move and work and are entitled to land to build a home on and grow food. However, Uganda’s progressive refugee policy is under increasing pressure due to the scale of the crisis, and services are overstretched while available land is dwindling. In 2017 alone, the European Commission provided €65 million in humanitarian aid to meet the basic needs of refugees, in addition to €20 million from the EU Emergency Trust Fund to increase the self-reliance of refugees.
Source: European Commission