The President said research has shown that once you are on treatment, there is a reduced chance of spreading the HIV infection.

HIV/AIDS | TOWARDS ZERO

Determined to realize Uganda’s goal to fast-track initiative on ending HIV/AIDS in Uganda by 2030, President Museveni told a high level meeting on AIDS organised by UNAIDS and Co-hosted by Uganda that with research, prevention and experience, it is possible to end AIDS in its totality.

“Your Excellences, I have been interacting with our experts from the Ministry of Health, UNAIDS and other health partners about HIV transmission and prevention. Using lessons from our own experience in Uganda, we are now convinced that it is possible to eliminate HIV/AIDS in its totality. As part of this commitment, we agreed on ambitious global and national Fast Track targets for ending AIDS,” the President said, adding “We are in a better position because we now clearly know its mode of transmission, availability of anti-retroviral therapy with an improved outcome and advanced research that has been able to answer most questions.

The President said research has shown that once you are on treatment, there is a reduced chance of spreading the HIV infection.

“For this reason, I invited you to address these challenges that face our countries and find means of how we can further strengthen our efforts,” he said.

The President who is accompanied by the First Lady Janet Kataaha Museveni is in New York for the 72nd United Nations General Assembly.

In June this year President Museveni launched the Presidential Fast-track Initiative on ending HIV & AIDS in Uganda by 2030. This was the first initiative in Africa and the entire world.

President Museveni said that he first came to know about HIV/AIDS during the liberation war when one of his soldiers got sick and died after the doctors failed to find out what he was suffering from.

President Museveni said when he captured power and sent some army officers to Cuba for training, Fidel Castrol told him about a disease that most of the officers who had been sent for training had been found with.

“Over 60 soldiers were sent to Cuba for training and 18 of these were found to be HIV positive,” he said.

The President said this made him to pick interest in the disease and find out how it was spread. “I found out that AIDS was spread through unprotected sex, blood transfusion, mother to child and using unsterilized sharp instruments,” he said.

President Museveni said that by then the AIDS prevalence in some areas in Uganda was at 30% and at the national level 18%.

“I knew we had to sound a strong alarm. When making an alarm about food in our culture we don’t make it loud because we want a few people to come but when it came to AIDS, I knew we had to sound a much louder alarm as like we were going to war,” he said.

The President said that the government adopted the ABC (abstinence, being faithful and use of condoms) method to sensitize and prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS which helped lower the Prevalence rate.

Mr. Museveni said that with the introduction of the antiretroviral the world is better placed to fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

The President emphasized the role of the family in the fight against AIDS.

“I must emphasize the role of the family in the fight against AIDS. Talk to your children, this is because the first relationship a child has is with the parents. We need to talk to our children about AIDS,” he said.

The President of Guinea who is also the Africa Union (AU) Chairperson Alpha Condé said that the AU was committed to ending AIDS on the African continent. He said the body had launched a campaign to hire 2 million health workers to provide health services to AIDS patients. “It is very important to have people who can provide health care to AIDS patients,” he said.

His Majesty King Mswati III of Swaziland, His Excellency President Arthur Peter Mutharika of the Republic of Malawi, his Excellency President Danny Faure of Seychelles, His Excellency Edgar Chagwa Lungu of the Republic Zambia and His Excellency Mokgweetsi Masisi of Botswana called upon countries to work together to defeat the AIDS pandemic everywhere in the world.

Ms. Jacquelyne Alesi of the Uganda Network for People Living with HIV and French singer and AIDS activist Madame Line Renaud called for more open mindness about HIV and an end to criminalization and discrimination of people with HIV and fulfillment of pledges of funding.

Mr. Michel Sidibé commended the countries that have increased funding towards the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Ambassador-at-Large, Deborah L. Birx, the Coordinator of the United States Government Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS and U.S. Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy said that the Trump administration was deeply committed to the global HIV/AIDS response. She announced the release of the United States PEPFAR Strategy for accelerating HIV/AIDS Epidemic Control 2017-2020.

Her Excellency Monica Geingos, the First Lady of Namibia and UNAIDS Special Advocate for Young Women and Adolescent Girls, Her Excellency Lorena Castillo de Varela the First Lady of Panama and UNAIDS Special Ambassador for AIDS in Latin America and Her Excellency Dominique Ouattarra the First Lady of Côte d’lvoire and USAID Special Ambassador for the Elimination of Mother –to-Child Transmission called upon governments and the international community to involve the families in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Sommaire exécutif

Les réfugiés burundais doivent « revenir au pays car la paix et la sécurité règnent sur tout le territoire national », a déclaré Joseph Butore, deuxième vice-président du Burundi, pendant le sommet de la solidarité pour les réfugiés tenu à Kampala (Ouganda) en juin 2017. Au cours d’une récente visite en Tanzanie, le président burundais, Pierre Nkurunziza, a tenu des propos similaires aux ressortissants burundais réfugiés de ce pays.
Ces propos sont contredits par les récits des Burundais qui continuent à fuir la peur, l’insécurité, et des abus et qui demandent asile dans les pays voisins. Depuis le déclenchement de la crise politique en avril 2015, accompagnée par une intense violence et répression, plus de 418.000 réfugiés et demandeurs d’asile burundais ont quitté le pays. Bien qu'il y ait moins de violence ouverte maintenant, les nouveaux arrivants dans les pays voisins ceux qui sont retournés au Burundi.
En juin 2017, International Refugees Rights Initiative (IRRI) s’est entretenue avec 30 Burundais récemment arrivés en Ouganda, entre avril et juin pour la majorité d’entre eux. Deux raisons principales les ont poussés à quitter le Burundi : les menaces et les abus perpétrés par les membres de l’Imbonerakure, milice de jeune affiliée au parti au pouvoir, et les assassinats et disparitions forcées de membres de leur famille. Certains ont évoqué des viols collectifs, de la torture et des détentions illégales. Pour une minorité de demandeurs d’asile, les motifs économiques jouaient un rôle dans leur décision de quitter le Burundi, mais toujours associés à d’autres raisons. L’Ouganda accueille actuellement environ 38.000 réfugiés burundais.
Une crise politique présente toujours une grande complexité et l’histoire de ceux qui ont fui un pays reflète rarement tous les côtés d’une réalité polymorphe. Néanmoins, le vécu de ceux qui ont fui le Burundi au cours des six derniers mois et vivent actuellement en exil en Ouganda indique que l’insécurité et les abus se poursuivent. La plupart des abus décrits à IRRI se sont déroulés dans des zones rurales, ce qui contredit l’évaluation selon laquelle l’insécurité et les abus sont limités dans plusieurs quartiers de la capitale, Bujumbura où se sont déroulées la plupart des manifestations lors de l’annonce par le Président Pierre Nkurunziza, en avril 2015, de sa candidature à un troisième mandat contesté. Les pratiques décrites dans ce rapport s’appuient sur plus de dix années de recherche d’IRRI sur le Burundi, notamment deux rapports de 2016 sur la dynamique de la crise et du déplacement.

Ce qui est nettement ressorti des entretiens, c’est la nature impitoyable et cruelle des violations commises par les Imbonerakure, qui semblent régulièrement endosser le rôle d’agents de sécurité de l’état et collaborer avec eux à la perpétration de violations des droits humains. Il est clair qu’ils ciblaient spécifiquement les membres de l’opposition ou les citoyens qui refusent d’adhérer au parti au pouvoir. Un grand nombre de demandeurs d’asile ont décrit la manière dont des membres de leur famille ont été sauvagement assassinés, dont ils ont été cruellement torturés en détention ou dont ils ont continué à souffrir en raison du sort des membres de leur famille arrêtés par la milice. Il semble n’y avoir aucun effort significatif de tenir responsable ceux qui commettent des violations des droits humains.
Cinq des trente demandeurs d’asile avec qui des entretenus ont été effectués, dont un homme, nous ont dit avoir été victimes de viol collectif par des membres des Imbonerakure ou des forces de sécurité, ce qui a occasionné des traumatismes durables et des blessures. Trois viols se sont produits au Burundi, un autre à la frontière avec la Tanzanie et le cinquième dans un camp de réfugiés en République démocratique du Congo (RDC).
Plusieurs demandeurs d’asile avec qui IRRI a parlé en Ouganda avaient d’abord cherché refuge en Tanzanie, mais se sont plaints de la situation épineuse dans ce pays pour les Burundais. La protection physique et juridique limitée s’ajoutant à une situation difficile sur le plan humanitaire et à des relations tendues avec la communauté hôte et les autorités tanzaniennes, beaucoup ont choisi de poursuivre leur route jusqu’en Ouganda. La majorité avait entendu dire par des membres de leur famille ou des amis déjà en Ouganda, que la situation y était nettement meilleure que dans les autres pays de la région des Grands Lacs.
La situation en Ouganda, notamment en ce qui concerne la protection juridique, la sécurité et la liberté de circulation relative et les nécessités de subsistance semble en effet meilleure que celle qui prévaut dans les pays voisins, particulièrement en Tanzanie et en RDC. Cependant, certains se sont tout de même plaints de questions de protection, de l’insuffisance d’articles nonalimentaires et de la difficulté d’accès à des soins médicaux spécialisés.
Aucun des Burundais exilés en Ouganda avec qui s’est entretenue IRRI n’envisage de retourner au Burundi dans un proche avenir, en dépit des tentatives controversées des autorités burundaises de les convaincre de le faire en février 2017. Trois conditions étaient énoncées par une majorité d’entre eux comme indispensables pour envisager un retour : le démantèlement de la milice Imbonerakure, un changement de gouvernement et l’obligation de rendre des comptes pour les violations des droits humains, notamment celles commises depuis avril 2015. La plupart cependant pensaient ces conditions ne seraient pas réalisées avant longtemps, sinon jamais, et invoquaient un obstacle plus profond à leur retour : la nature cyclique du conflit au Burundi. La tentative de l’ancien président Tanzanien, Benjamin Mkapa, d’instaurer un dialogue entre l’élite politique n’a été mentionnée que par une personne avec qui s’est entretenue IRRI: la plupart semblaient avoir perdu toute foi en leurs politiciens, qu’ils appartiennent au parti au pouvoir ou à l’opposition.
Le gouvernement burundais doit de toute urgence mettre fin au climat de violence, de répression et d’impunité, en démantelant la milice Imbonerakure, en créant les conditions d’un retour au pluralisme politique et à la liberté d’expression sur tout le territoire et en coopérant avec les mécanismes internationaux de responsabilité. Étant donnée sa réticence à le faire, les acteurs internationaux, particulièrement ceux de la région, devraient faire pression sur les autorités pour qu’elles s’engagent à prendre des mesures significatives pour réinstaurer la sécurité et la liberté, devraient adopter des mesures concrètes pour protéger les Burundais et devraient continuer à offrir aux Burundais une vie sûre et digne à l’extérieur de leur pays.

The issue of hunger has aroused great interest among the international community when famine was declared in South Sudan last February. Since then, the United Nations has declared the famine situation officially over. However, the root causes of hunger, and therefore of potential famine situations, are still there. The number of food insecure people is increasing. According to the last WFP report on the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, the number of undernourished people on the planet has increased to 815 million in 2016, up from 777 million in 2015. East Africa and Yemen are among the most affected areas. Increasingly complex and protracted conflicts and the adverse effects of climate change are among the main causes of hunger.

Conflicts and hunger

There is a strong correlation between conflict and food crisis. In the face of collapsing systems and services, steadily worsening insecurity, lack of access to water, population displacements, access, supply and administrative constraints, food crisis is often an inescapable outcome of conflicts. The food security situation has deteriorated mainly in conflict-affected areas, often exacerbated by extreme meteorological events.

Conflict and hunger are the main causes of population displacements. In South Sudan, the protracted conflict raging since 2013 has plunged the country into a serious food and health crisis with the proliferation of cholera. Over 1.8 million people are now internally displaced. A large part of the population of South Sudan relies on agriculture for their livelihoods. Farmers leave their land to flee violence. Land in the province of Equatoria was progressively abandoned as the conflict reached the province. Equatoria used to be the breadbasket of South Sudan. With 3.9 million food insecure people, "South Sudan is facing the worst food insecurity situation in its history," said Michael Mangano, ACTED country director. Hunger has already caused one million people to leave the country in search of food.

Uganda is the country hosting most refugees in Africa. Over one million refugees currently reside in Uganda, 800,000 of which come from South Sudan. An average of 2,800 refugees from South Sudan cross the border every day.

Displaced populations are particularly vulnerable – some of them have already been displaced more than once. They often resort to negative coping mechanisms like having only one meal a day, eating less nutritional food or selling goods. The number of refugees and displaced persons at the global level reaches 64 million people. Children are often the first victims: nearly 122 million stunted children under five years of age are living in countries affected by conflicts.

Extreme weather events

According to the authors of the FAO report, "the concomitance of conflicts and natural disasters of climatic origin could be more frequent under the effect of climate change, because it not only aggravates problems related to insecurity but can also lead inexorably to conflicts".

Droughts are recurring events in the Horn of Africa and the Sahelian Belt - but after three years of persistent drought, aggravated by climate change, the food security situation dramatically worsened. Somalia is affected by particularly intense climatic shocks exacerbated by the El Niño phenomenon, and nearly half of the population is currently food insecure (6.2 million people). In 2010-2011, the famine in Somalia killed close to 260,000 people. While famine could be averted in 2017 through emergency humanitarian interventions, the situation remains catastrophic, while drought continues and the forecasts regarding the seasonal rains remain negative.

Herds have been decimated by repeated droughts and their effects, thus jeopardizing livelihoods, and forcing populations, mostly living from agro-pastoral activities, to move in search of water and food. This results in conflicts over resources, and puts additional pressure on already limited services that can’t cope with the massive arrival of displaced people around urban centers, while droughts continue to spread and families who lost almost everything struggle to survive.

945,000 children under the age of five are suffering from acute malnutrition in Somalia, 185,000 of which from severe acute malnutrition. More than half of the country's population needs food assistance. Deaths directly related to drought continue to be reported. Water-related diseases such as acute watery diarrhea or cholera are becoming more widespread and continue to increase, due to the lack of water, poor hygiene and sanitation conditions, but also global warming, which fosters the proliferation of bacteria in the environment. Diseases increase, and contribute to increase the risk of malnutrition.

Access to water, malnutrition and diseases

Malnutrition and diseases are very much interrelated - malnutrition facilitates the proliferation of diseases and vice versa. Malnutrition and diseases weaken the immune system, particularly of children, who are thus more likely to die from diseases or dehydration, especially since access to water is greatly compromised. Children are the first victims of water-borne diseases. Their bodies are deprived of the nutritional elements necessary for their growth. This can easily lead to malnutrition, which in turn leads to greater vulnerability to diseases. Weakened and malnourished bodies are more likely to be infected by deadly bacteria like cholera.

Cholera is re-emerging and proliferating in many conflict areas as a result of deteriorating health and humanitarian conditions. Populations of countries like South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Yemen have been plunged into a deep food and health crisis. Yemen is currently experiencing the worst cholera epidemic in the world, with 686,783 suspected cases on past 17th September. In the face of conflict, poverty and cholera, the country is now on the brink of famine with 17 million people affected by food insecurity.

Cholera broke out in Yemen in October 2016 and massively spread throughout the country in April 2017, with the start of the rainy season, due to the lack of doctors and functional health facilities in the country. Hunger only aggravates the situation: an estimated 1.7 million children suffer from malnutrition according to the United Nations. "A malnourished child has no chance against cholera," says Liny Suharlim, ACTED country director in Yemen. "Many people die because they are not able to reach the nearest health center."

Food and medicine supply is severely compromised by fighting and bureaucratic constraints. "10,000 people died because they could not leave the country to receive the medical care they needed," Liny Suharlim says. The situation is likely to worsen, with famine threatening the country - over one million people, as the bloody conflict continues to rage, after already two and a half year of suffering.

Humanitarian mobilization is essential to counter an even more dramatic evolution of the food and health crises that are affecting more and more people in the world. ACTED remains committed to addressing food insecurity and the spread of serious diseases and epidemics and to facilitate access to clean water. Beyond emergency operations, one of the priorities of ACTED's field teams is to foster the construction of people's resilience to shocks. Whether they are of human or climatic origin, building resilience to shocks is a critical step to cope with future shocks and reduce vulnerabilities, in the face of increasingly complex, multi-dimensional, and multifaceted crises in today’s world.

Tana is currently formulating the new Danish Country Programme for Uganda 2018 – 2022.

The programme will have a budget of 750 million DKK for the period. The country programme will consist of 2 thematic programmes. One supporting good governance and democracy, and the other supporting growth and employment.

The good governance and democracy programme will consist of the following 4 engagements:
– Phase II of a Democratic Governance Facility
– Support to the Inspectorate of Government
– Support to strenghening the Ministry of Finance’s Public Financial Management reform programme
– Support to Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative (ARLPI) in Northern Uganda

The growth and employment programme will support the following 4 engagements:
– North Uganda Resilience Initiative
– Agricultural Business Initiative
– Trade Development Initiative
– Business environment reform

The aim of this assignment is to assist the Embassy with developing all the necessary documentation for the Country Programme in line Danida’s Aid Management Guidelines.

Tana is providing 5 consultants for the assignment.

1 million refugees from South Sudan in Uganda

ABOUT RETS:
In situations where people have been forced to flee, the Refugee Emergency Telecommunications Sector (RETS) provides vital communications to UNHCR, its partners and the extended humanitarian community. There are currently 250+ users from UNHCR, partners and the wider humanitarian community.

EMERGENCY LEVEL:
UNHCR Level 3 Emergency

171 projects in 39 countries – last year, Kolping International was able to support vocational training, agriculture, micro credit, and water projects with over 11 million euro. The donations by private donors increased significantly, amounting to nearly 7.3 million Euro – that’s an increase of over 20% compared with last year.

"On a highly competitive donor market like the one in Germany it is not always easy to win the attention of donors”, says Dr Markus Demele, General Secretary of the International Kolping Society. “That is why we are very happy about the significant increase in fundraising income. This proves that thousands of donors place trust in our work which enabled us also in 2016 to carry out sustainable poverty reduction projects in the spirit of Fr. Adolph Kolping."

The highest amount of funds for the project work of the Kolping Society was provided by the public sector: In 2016, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) funded SEK e.V.’s “Help for self-help” projects with 7,298 million Euro (2015: 6,873 million Euro).

I. Introduction

1. The present report is submitted pursuant to Security Council resolution 2327 (2016), by which the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) until 15 December 2017 and requested me to report on the implementation of the mandate every 90 days. It covers political and security developments from 2 June to 1 September 2017, the humanitarian situation, and progress in the implementation of the Mission mandate. It also provides a review of progress made by the parties in ceasing hostilities, returning to the path of dialogue and achieving inclusiveness within the Government.

II. Political and economic developments

2. There has been minimal progress in the implementation of the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (the peace agreement). The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has been leading efforts to hold a high-level revitalization forum in what it sees as a final attempt to bring the peace process back on track. Meanwhile, various other initiatives are now under way which are also aimed at finding a political solution to the conflict, including the national dialogue and an initiative by the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, to reunify factions of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM).

3. To date, however, these initiatives have yet to show tangible progress towards reducing the conflict or enhancing implementation of the peace agreement. The Government has prioritized efforts towards reconciliation through the national dialogue and has stated its intent to hold elections within the timeline outlined in the peace agreement. Opposition figures outside the country remain reluctant to engage in the national dialogue, arguing that the conditions are not ripe for genuine dialogue, and the modalities for including the opposition and “estranged groups” in the IGAD process are still being discussed. Meanwhile, the economic situation remains dire and continues to fuel public frustration, despite some Government efforts to put in place fiscal austerity measures.

National political developments

4. On 9 July, in a message to the nation on the occasion of the sixth anniversary of independence, the President, Salva Kiir, emphasized his Government’s efforts to promote peace and security, recalled his unilateral ceasefire declaration and issued a general amnesty. He stressed that the peace agreement and the ongoing national dialogue were the only way forward to attain peace. However, neither the ceasefire nor the peace agreement have been broadly respected or genuinely implemented.

5. The Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission convened plenary meetings on 12 July and 24 August. The Commission’s six technical working committees submitted status reports on progress in implementing each of the peace agreement’s thematic chapters to inform plenary discussions. In particular, committee members called on the Government to expedite the enactment of a bill providing amendments required to align the Transitional Constitution of 2011 with the peace agreement. The bill was submitted by the National Constitutional Amendment Committee to the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs on 13 April but is still under review. Meanwhile, the National Constitutional Amendment Committee started amending the relevant national security laws and conducted preliminary consultations on revisions to the Political Parties Act and the National Elections Act of 2012.

6. On 17 July, President Kiir replaced six members of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly linked to SPLM in Opposition under the former First Vice-President, Riek Machar, with new appointees allied to the faction of the First Vice-President Taban Deng Gai, further consolidating the latter’s presence in the Government. On 14 and 27 July, Riek Machar announced the appointment of new governors for 9 of the 21 federal states that his faction has proposed.

7. The National Dialogue Steering Committee conducted plenary meetings from 29 May to 22 June. On 8 June, the plenary created 15 subcommittees to conduct thematic and local-level consultations. Two special delegations reached out to opposition leaders residing outside the country, including in Khartoum and Nairobi. The Steering Committee Co-Chair led a special delegation to reach out to Riek Machar on 28 June in South Africa, but they were unable to meet with him. Delegations also travelled to Khartoum, Addis Ababa and Nairobi to continue their outreach. From 3 to 28 July, the Steering Committee conducted a seminar on international lessons learned in managing dialogues for its members, with technical support provided by the United Nations and other partners. On 28 July, the Steering Committee announced preparations to commence subnational consultations in September.

8. On 15 June, the members of the voluntary civil society task force on the implementation of the peace agreement issued a common position on the national dialogue process in which they expressed concern that the process could be compromised by limitations to the freedom of expression, the non-participation of opposition groups, continuing hostilities, the composition and partiality of the Steering Committee, failure to release political detainees, and lack of confidence in the parties to the conflict. The task force called for the national dialogue to focus on national concerns, such as vision, identity and unity, security sector and economic reforms, historical grievances, distribution of natural resources, and governance.

9. Given the continuing lack of women’s participation in the peace process, on 29 June a civil society group named the South Sudan Women’s Monthly Forum issued a gender gap analysis of the implementation of the peace agreement. It highlighted the fact that the 25 per cent quota for women’s participation in the executive had not been met and recommended that more women be appointed to key government positions.

4,384
Refugees received vegetable seeds in Upper Nile during the reporting period.

3,815
Refugees and IDPs received aid items from UNHCR across South Sudan during the reporting period.

500
Refugees and IDPs received capacity building training during the reporting period.

KEY FIGURES

276,900
Refugees in South Sudan as of 31 August 2017.

1.89 million
IDPs in South Sudan including 212,969 in UNMISS Protection of Civilian sites as of 14 September 2017

US $883.5 million
Funding requested by UNHCR for the South Sudan Situation in 2017.

Highlights

• UNHCR Deputy Regional Director for the Regional Bureau of Africa visits South Sudan: UNHCR Deputy Regional Director for the Regional Bureau of Africa Angele Dikongue-Atangana visited South Sudan on 12-15 September 2017. The aim of the visit was to get first-hand information on the refugee and IDP situation in South Sudan. During her visit, the Deputy Regional Director travelled to Bentiu, Yida and Jamjang where she met with refugees, IDPs, UNHCR partners working in refugee and IDP camps and settlements, as well as met with local authorities. In Juba the UNHCR Deputy Regional Director met with the Commissioner for Refugee Affairs, who also accompanied her during the mission to refugee and IDP locations.

• Refugee students to pay the same university tuition fees as South Sudan nationals: In Juba, the National Ministry of Education and General Instructions made amendments to the current regulations of tuition fees for refugee students. Instead of the previous annual tuition fee of 400 USD while nationals paid SSP equivalent to 200 USD annually, both refugee and South Sudanese students will now pay the same rate which is 125 USD per semester.

• South Sudan Minister of Heath inspects UNHCR projects in Unity: During the reporting period, National Minister of Health Hon. Dr. Riak Gai Kok visited four health facilities in Ruweng state that are supported by UNHCR. During his four-day visit, Hon Gai declared Pariang Primary Health Care Centre (PHCC) as a State Hospital. The hospital will have access to Government medical provisions accorded to hospitals in South Sudan.

• Over 4,000 refugees receive vegetable seeds in Upper Nile: In Yusuf Batil camp, Danish Refugee Council (DRC) conducted supplementary seed distribution to 1,096 households (4,384 individuals). The persons of concern received an assortment of vegetable seeds including (Okra, Eggplant, Pumpkin, Tomatoes, Onion, and Sukuma). The targeted seeds distribution was in support of agricultural production with an overall aim of increasing food availability and access among vulnerable refugee and host community households.

• UNHCR trains women in business kills in Jonglei: In Bor, UNHCR Partner INTERSOS conducted a business skills training for 35 women and girls at the Women-Friendly Space (WFS). The training covered the definition of business, sources of incomes, income and expenditure, and the use of the cashbook. This activity is part of the women center engagement as safe space venue where women stay together and freely speak about sensitive issues affecting them.

• Refugee farmers receive farming training in Yei: In Yei, UNHCR partner UNMOR trained 50 refugee farmers on good agronomic practices provided by community-based agriculture extension workers. Cumulatively, 241 farmers have been trained on various topics. These trainings are aimed at equipping farmers with additional knowledge for better management of their livelihood activities in the refugee locations in Lasu.

Juba Gumbo Park

• Significant decrease (23%) in people transiting through Juba Gumbo Park respect to the previous week (1083 individuals compared to 1401). The overwhelming majority of people moving are youths between 5 and 17 years old (509 ind. - 47%).

• Majority of people are moving from Juba (701 individuals - 65% of the total) and they are manly going to Uganda (547 ind. to Refugee Camps and 107 to Kampala). Mainly reasons for Movements are “Shortage of Food” (354 ind. – 50%) and “Insecurity” (142 ind. – 20%).

• All the people coming from Refugee Camps in Uganda (236 ind.) are heading to Juba. Main reason of the movement is “Shortage of Food” (204 ind. – 86%)

Bentiu PoC

• A total of 1129 were recorded moving in and out of the PoC (a reduction of 26,5% respect to the total movement of the previous Reporting Period – 1535 individuals). Among them 147 are entering the PoC and 982 exiting (249 and 1286 respectively the previous week).

• People entering are arriving mainly from Rubkona (39 ind – 26,5%), followed by Leer (31 ind. – 21%), Koch (28 ind. – 19%) and Guit (17 ind. – 11,5%). Main reasons for moving in is “Shortage of Food” (60 ind. – 40% ) followed by “Insecurity” (52 ind. - 35%).

• The majority of IDPs exiting are Women (760 ind. – 77%) and Children (460 ind. – 47%).
  They are mainly going to Rubkona (517 ind. - 53%) and Guit (342 ind. - 35%). Main reason for leaving is “To Join the rest of the Family” (643 ind. – 65%). The majority (81%) state they are staying outside the PoC for 1 to 3 months only.

Malakal PoC

• 60 individuals were recorded entering the PoC (compared to the 73 of the previous week) while practically no exits were recorded (only 1 individual in the reporting period). 27 of the people entering the PoC (45%) are children and youths (under 18 years old).

• 41 individuals (68%) are coming from Fashoda while 11 from Juba (18%).

• Main reason for entering the PoC is “Shortage of Food” (24 individuals – 41%) followed by “Joining the rest of the family” (18 individuals - 30%). Only 4 persons (6,5%) declare to enter the PoC because of “Insecurity”

Experts from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan and Uganda convened in Entebbe, Uganda, to identify and discuss opportunities to strengthen cross-border interventions for guinea worm disease eradication. Participants mapped a joint action plan for 2018 to strengthen surveillance, communication and coordination for guinea worm disease eradication. They further charted a strategy to strengthen cross-border surveillance among refugees to prevent the disease from spilling over to refugee host-communities. This is in line with the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (WHO-AFRO) campaign- “final push”, to stop transmission of guinea worm disease in Africa.

The Minister of Health, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, in her opening remarks, highlighted that “We need to scale up community-based surveillance and Social Behavioral Change Communication to tackle guinea worm disease.”

She further indicated that the Government of Uganda is committed to collaborating with Ethiopia, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo to attain guinea worm eradication. She urged the other countries to emulate Uganda’s approach saying, “I request countries to integrate guinea worm disease surveillance into their Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response frameworks.”

WHO Uganda Country Office’s Dr Fatunmbi Bayo applauded Uganda for eradicating guinea worm disease. He said, “Only four countries remain endemic in the African region, two of these in East Africa (Ethiopia and South Sudan). With increased effort, the world is close to attaining the Guinea Worm Eradication goal.”

Dr Bayo indicated his awareness of the continuous challenges faced by the global program on guinea worm disease eradication including limited resources and insecurity but called on countries to remain committed to the guinea worm disease eradication goal.

The World Health Assembly (WHA) resolutions calling for the eradication of guinea worm disease have seen the annual incidence of guinea worm disease drop from, 883,640 cases in 1989 to 25 cases in 2016 in Africa. Forty countries in Africa were certified for achieving uninterrupted indigenous transmission, while three others are awaiting certification. Four countries including Chad, Ethiopia, Mali and South Sudan remain endemic, even though Mali has not registered a case since 2015.

Movement of refugees from endemic countries including Mali and South Sudan poses a threat to the maintenance of guinea worm free status in certified countries. WHO has called on countries to intensify coordination and collaboration to strengthen surveillance along common borders. Enhanced cross-border surveillance is critical now more than ever, to accelerate the push of Guinea worm out of the East African region and out of Africa.

For Additional Information or to Request Interviews, Please contact:

Mwebembezi Edmond
Public Information Officer
Tel. : +256 414 335569
Cell: +256 782 962674
Email: mwebembezie@who.int

NEEDS ANALYSIS

• Hostilities has spread in many locations of Greater Equatoria particularly in Yei, Kajo-Keji, Kapoeta North, Rumbek, Morobo, Mundri West and Maridi County forcing thousands of people to leave their homes and seek protection and humanitarian assistance in neighbouring counties and some are even crossing border to Uganda.

• Clash between the opposition and government forces in Upper Nile State around Pagak area has caused large displacement. People are temporarily sheltered in Jikow area while the other are crossing the border to Ethiopia seeking refuge.

• Rainy season is in fully swings all over the country, limiting the road access. The cluster utilize air transport to deliver goods to distribution sites access is limited by road.

RESPONSE

• Thus far, cluster partners have reached 137,632 Households (606,162 individuals) with NFIs and 27,655 households (142,380 individuals) with shelter assistance.

• The core pipeline managed to dispatch 2,144 MT of stock from Juba to the field locations for both prepositioning and response.

• The cluster partners continue to provide flexible and lightweight kits to affected populations in difficult to reach, remote locations particularly in Central Unity areas. A total of 3,500 survival kits have been distributed.

GAPS & CHALLENGES

• Access remains main challenge to the partners providing humanitarian assistance particularly in remote area where there are no regular flights operated by UNHAS. The cluster brings this issue to the ICWG meeting to add those locations into priority list for Log Cluster and UNHAS

Country Overview

Introduction

At the end of June 2017, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) hosted 40,015 Burundian refugees, out of whom 38,133 reside in the province of South Kivu including 30,030 in Lusenda Camp, 6,670 who reside in host families, and 1,427 who remain in transit centres. An additional 1,882 Burundians are living with host communities in Katanga, Maniema and North Kivu Provinces.

In the first six months of 2017, a total of 6,178 Burundian refugees crossed into DRC, with a peak of 2,086 registered in February. Burundian refugees enter the DRC through Uvira and Fizi territories in South Kivu province, crossing one of the 22 formal or informal border entry points. The security situation in South Kivu is volatile due to the presence of armed groups causing considerable internal displacement. The province also hosts refugees of other nationalities, notably Rwandans.

Refugees have little access to economic resources to meet their survival needs, except those who receive land to cultivate. According to informal return intentions surveys, refugees are unwilling to return to their country of origin in the foreseeable future due to security concerns. Dwindling funding is a growing cause for concern in maintaining peaceful co-existence between refugees and their hosts, increasing tensions as a result of competition over already stretched resources. Additionally, the reported presence of the Forces Nationales de Liberation (FNL) and the Forces Républicaines Burundaises (FOREBU) in the area constitutes a threat for the safety of Burundian refugees and negatively impacts the civilian character of asylum.

To maintain the civilian character of asylum, UNHCR is supporting 40 police officers in Lusenda refugee camp and is funding a security screening by the National Commission for Refugee (CNR), General Directorate for Migration (DGM), and other local authorities to make the distinction, upon arrival in the reception and transit centres, between genuine refugees and armed elements.

While DRC authorities have maintained an open-door policy for refugees, prima facie status for Burundian refugees was revoked in January 2017, mainly to allow for individual security screening. Freedom of movement is guaranteed and refugees are receiving refugee certificates. Based on the government’s decision that assistance should take place in a camp setting, a site was opened in Lusenda (Fizi territory), with four extensions to date (Lulinda, Katungulu I, Katungulu II, and Katungulu III) where multi-sector assistance is provided to refugees through a community-based approach.

Initially planned for a maximum of 20,000 refugees, Lusenda camp and its extensions are now overcrowded, putting significant pressure on the provision of basic and essential services. The overcrowding has also given rise to significant security challenges. The local authorities have granted additional land (Mulongwe) for the establishment of a new camp to accommodate up to 30,000 refugees. Construction works started in July 2017 after delays linked to security and funding constraints.

UNHCR coordinates the overall refugees response targeting camp-based refugees as well as those living with the host community in close cooperation with government authorities and international agencies and NGOs.

New study presents key findings to address displacement risk and impacts in the Greater Horn of Africa

Tuesday 26 September 2017 (Geneva/Mombasa)

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) launched today a report focussing on “Reducing Displacement Risk in the Greater Horn of Africa”. The publication presents the first baseline for displacement risk associated with sudden-onset disasters in the countries of the Greater Horn of Africa with the ultimate aim of reducing future displacement risk. As sudden-onset natural hazards, primarily floods, caused more than 600,000 new displacements in 2016 in the Greater Horn of Africa, this report is very timely.

“The need to address the risk and impacts of disaster displacement, which will be made worse by climate change, is a global and regional policy priority. To do so, however, such risk must be measured, and governments and other agencies need a baseline against which to measure their progress,“ said Justin Ginnetti, head of Data and Analysis at IDMC. “To address this need, we have developed a methodology to estimate displacement risk associated with sudden-onset natural hazards, and the result is the first fully probabilistic assessment of the phenomenon for the Greater Horn of Africa”.

Displacement in the Greater Horn of Africa is highly complex because a range of interlinked triggers and drivers are at play. Disasters increase competition for land and resources, which can lead to violence and conflict. In turn, this can also increase communities’ vulnerability to the impacts of natural hazards.

Furthermore, the region is among those worst affected by the multiple effects of climate change including above average temperature, excessive or insufficient rainfall, desertification and environmental degradation.

At present, only three countries in the region - Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda - systematically collect data on disasters and maintain a national loss inventory. Such information is needed to ensure that those in greatest need of assistance are prioritised, self-reliance is encouraged, obstacles to solutions are addressed and settlement options are risk-informed and sustainable, leaving people less vulnerable to future hazards rather than putting them back in harm’s way.

Significantly, the report highlights the need for more investment to track how many people are displacedover time after the event in order to strengthen the resilience of displaced communities and their hosts.

There are also important conceptual and data gaps on displacement associated with drought, and given that more people are likely to be displaced by drought in the region than by other hazards addressed by the report, such a gap hinders the effort to prevent displacement. “If updated and extended to other areas of the region, IDMC’s current model for analyzing displacement of pastoralists could be used to improve resilience not only for nomadic groups but also other affected communities,” said Leonardo Milano, Senior Data Scientist at IDMC.

“The report’s findings also suggest low levels of preparedness to cope with hazards in the region.
Government and communities need to be better prepared to confront the risks they face, including the establishment of effective early-warnings systems. The would cause more short-term displacement, but save many more lives."

Key Facts

Greater Horn of Africa: Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda, plus Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania.

Displacement figures:

• Sudden-onset natural hazards, primarily floods, triggered more than 600,000 new displacements in 2016 in the Greater Horn of Africa.

• Slow-onset events such as drought and environmental degradation added considerably to the figures, but quantifying their impacts is difficult.

• At the same time, conflict and violence triggered at least 800,000 new displacements in 2016.

ENDS

Note to editors

About the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC)
The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) (http://www.internal-displacement.org) was established in 1998. Monitoring internal displacement caused by conflict, violence, human rights violations and natural disasters worldwide, IDMC is widely respected as the leading source of information and analysis on internal displacement throughout the world.

Contacts

Ms Sian Bowen
Head of Communications
Email: sian.bowen@idmc.ch
Office Tel: + 41 22 552 3612
Mobile: +41 (0) 78 630 16 78

Ms Francesca Da Ros (Geneva)
Communications Coordinator
Email : francesca.da.ros@idmc.ch
Office Tel: + 41 22 552 3645

Follow IDMC on social media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InternalDisplacement Twitter: @IDMC_Geneva

This weekly bulletin focuses on selected acute public health emergencies occurring in the WHO African Region. The WHO Health Emergencies Programme is currently monitoring 46 events in the region. This week’s edition covers key ongoing events, including:

• Cholera in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Cholera in Nigeria
• Lassa fever in Nigeria
• Yellow fever in Nigeria
• Measles in Uganda
• Floods/mudslide in Sierra Leone

• Humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
For each of these events, a brief description followed by public health measures implemented and an interpretation of the situation is provided.

A table is provided at the end of the bulletin with information on all new and ongoing public health events currently being monitored in the region, as well as events that have recently been closed.
Major challenges include:

• The high proportion of events occurring in countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Nigeria underscores the need to strengthen country’s capacities and preparedness, and to continue to build capacity in these areas under the Country Business Model.

• Access to potable water has remained an important underlying factor for multiple health emergencies in the African region. The multiple water-related health emergencies necessitate closer multisectoral work and political commitment redundant.

ABOUT RETS:
In situations where people have been forced to flee, the Refugee Emergency Telecommunications Sector (RETS) provides vital communications to UNHCR, its partners and the extended humanitarian community. There are currently 250+ users from UNHCR, partners and the wider humanitarian community.

EMERGENCY LEVEL:
UNHCR Level 3 Emergency

Highlights

• WFP is quickly running out of funds to provide food and nutrition assistance to 1.1 refugees living in the settlements. The operation requires USD 70.7 million for the next six months (September 2017 – February 2018).

• WFP is providing protective rations during the lean season to households with people receiving nutrition assistance for the treatment of moderate acute malnutrition to reduce ration sharing and subsequently improve MAM treatment recovery rates.

Operational Updates

• WFP is quickly running out of funds to provide food and nutrition assistance to 1.1 million refugees. Despite the continued support from traditional and new donors, and new contributions received in recent months, the operation requires USD 70.7 million for the next six months (September 2017 -February 2018) to meet the increasing refugee needs. Expected contributions, if made available in time, will enable WFP to purchase food from the local markets during the harvest season.

• A WFP-led food assessment conducted in June/July in Karamoja region found that about 46 percent of the households in the region are food insecure, of which 9 percent were severely food insecure. There is a slight improvement this year, compared to the same period last year, where 50 percent of households were found to be food insecure, 12 percent of them being extremely food insecure. However, the prevalence of malnutrition increased to 13.8 percent compared to 11 percent in 2016.

• WFP is providing protective rations to households with members receiving nutrition assistance for the treatment of moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) in Karamoja region. Since May 2017, when the programme started, a total of 25,000 people (5,000 households) have received the protective rations. Protective household rations are provided to food insecure households during the lean season to reduce sharing of specialized nutritious foods meant for treatment of MAM. In addition, the rations increase enrollment and recovery rates of the treatment programme.

• WFP continues to provide technical support to the Government in the set-up of the single registry, which is expected to improve delivery of social protection programmes. Registration has been finalized in Moroto, Napak and Ka’abong districts, and will begin in Kotido/Abim in mid-September. It is expected that the entire region (seven districts) will be finalized by the end of the year with the registration of approximately 1 million people. The registration exercise adopts a clustered – census style approach and captures details of all household members as well as taking biometrics and photos for those aged 5 years and above. Once finalized, it is expected that the single registry will improve the delivery of efficient, effective and transparent assistance by the Government and its partners.

Partnerships

• In support of SDG2 to end hunger, WFP works with other UN agencies, international and national NGOs, academia and the private sector to ensure a multi-sectoral and sustainable approach to programming.

In traditional Africa, a girl becomes a woman when she starts her menstruation periods. Soiling one’s dress during this period is seen as a taboo. Women and adolescent girls try their best to live a normal life, play and run their usual chores as though no change has happened around them. This is okay under normal circumstances, but not in an emergency setting like the case for refugees. They move abruptly, un-prepared and are forced by circumstances. It is rare that they can afford any sanitary wears and getting their menstrual periods becomes an additional burden. With the painful cramps, backaches and bleeding, many girls keep indoors, while women find it hard to move out to hunt for food for their children. They lack sanitary wears, knickers, soap, among other basics, while many complain, they have no privacy.

Uganda red cross society on 8th August, 2017, gave out dignity kits and other materials worth 40 Million UGX to refugees in Imvepi and Bidi bidi refugee camps in Northern Uganda.This was done in Zone 15 (Bidi-bidi), Villages17 and 18 of Imvepi camps respectively.

Over 1000 women in reproductive age and adolescent girls were targeted and they each received 1 bucket, washable re-usable sanitary towels (2 packs each containing 4 pads), 2 bars of washing soap, 4 tablets of bathing soap, pegs, face towels, 4 knickers, linen materials among others. Harriet Foni 22, became over whelmed. She participated in the Red Cross pre-assessment survey where her voice represented other women and girls before these materials were distributed. This partly informed Red Cross decision to consider giving out these dignity kits to this group of beneficiaries.

“We have really suffered a lot. Sometimes we would fail to go to school or even leave our homes because you can’t have the confidence to freely walk around. When the Red Cross people came here to ask, I freely shared my mind. I am happy they have come and given us these essential stuff to help us the women. The pads are really helpful and this will greatly improve the hygiene and life of the female refugees. Life is now good. I am very excited” Harriet joyfully shared.

Esther Kyokutamba, a Uganda Red Cross volunteer participated in the distribution and witnessed how refugee women ululated upon receiving these items. “The ladies appreciated especially the pads and knickers. This activation is so handy. It comes at a time when women have been in need of these pads to enable them move freely. Pads are expensive and not easy to find in a camp setup yet they are necessary.”

“This is a really good move and we are positive people’s that these little acts of charity touch the lives of these people. We always want to feel we make a difference by giving NFIs that are relevant. These girls and mothers lacked basic materials to enable them go through their menstrual period smoothly. This will boost their confidence tremendously” said John Paul Owiny, URCS Wash Engineer in-charge of hygiene promotion in the refugee settlements – Northern Uganda. Owiny also promised that more of the same will be distributed to other camps and continue supporting women and girls to overcome shame and gain their dignity while in society.

“This is very helpful to us women especially the females between 18 and 30. I am thirty years but I have been struggling. I have had to use ordinary clothes at times as a way of improvising. We lacked soap and sometimes didn’t wash them. One can smell, others soil clothes and keep at home without moving as if we are prisoners. I thank Red Cross for always coming up to educate and support us. They first taught us how to use the pads, be clean and observe our privacy even though we are in camps. I have learnt a lot and I am ready to use the pads. We will wash and hang them to dry, cover with this linen for privacy, use pegs to hang well, generally we have been given the best gifts every woman need in life. Thank you Red Cross.” Said Dianna Duddu,30.

Thirteen people have been confirmed dead in Nfasha Trading Centre, Ikamiro Parish, Rubanda District, after a rainstorm that lasted about an hour.

The victims were swept away by running water on Tuesday at about 4pm.

Surging water brought down nine houses and carried down the valley two babies, three women and eight men where they died.

Four men were injured and rushed to Kabale Hospital.

The District Police Commander, Mr Ramathan Tai confirmed the deaths saying 13 bodies have been recovered, seven on Tuesday evening and six on Wednesday.

Residents and police are trying to establish if there are more people missing in order out carry out a search.

Western Uganda has experienced heavy rainfall in the last one month.

Recently, Kisiizi Hospital in Rukungiri District was flooded killing three babies, disrupting operations and damaging several medical equipment.