Refugees: UNHCR warns of situation in CAR, Sahel or Uganda
The refugee situation in Uganda's camps worries UNHCR (illustration image) © AFP / Isaac Kasamani
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This Sunday is World Refugee Day.
A day instituted by the United Nations and which honors the millions of people forced to flee their country of origin to escape conflict or persecution.
According to the annual report of the UNHCR, the UN refugee agency released last Friday, the number of internally displaced persons increased by 4% last year to 82.4 million people, a figure twice as high as ten years ago.
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The coronavirus pandemic has not had a significant impact on the numbers since 2020 represents the ninth year of a continuous increase in forced displacement around the world.
All the factors that push people to flee continued at the same rate last year, wars, persecutions and other forms of discrimination.
What has worsened and because of the coronavirus are the living conditions of the refugees.
In Africa, one of the most striking examples is Uganda, the country on the continent that hosts the largest number of them.
They face growing food insecurity and are forced to reduce the amount and frequency of their meals.
Another lesson learned from the UNHCR report is the increase in internally displaced persons.
This is particularly evident in the countries of the central Sahel, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
Countries where populations flee from the terrorist threat.
In the Sahel, especially the central Sahel, last year we saw population displacements, mainly towards the interior of their own country.
This is one of the situations that worries us the most in the world, also because of the speed of travel.
It is the region in the world where the number of displaced people is currently increasing the most rapidly.
Céline Schmitt, UNHCR spokesperson in France
Edmond Sadaka
Another major concern, according to UNHCR, is the Central African Republic.
The violence of 2020 led to significant displacements within the country but also towards neighboring DRC.
The refugees find themselves in remote areas in the north of the country, areas that are difficult to access for humanitarian teams.
In CAR, people have been forced to flee following further violence within their own country but also to neighboring countries, mainly the DRC.
So there too new population movements and a need for humanitarian access ...
Céline Schmitt, UNHCR spokesperson in France
Edmond Sadaka
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Central African Republic
Uganda
Refugees
International Migration