Refugees in Rwanda desperate as cuts made to UN aid
The 135,000 refugees in numerous camps in Rwanda are from Congo and Burundi and depend on humanitarian assistance in the form of a cash transfer to meet their basic food needs.
CAPE TOWN, April 20 (ANA) – Since the UN World Food Programme (WFP) cut assistance to Rwanda more than a month ago, 60% of refugees are suffering from hunger, with reports of suicide as a direct consequence.
On February 12, Edith Heines, WFP’s Rwanda director, announced: “This is a desperate situation and without an immediate response from donors, we simply have no choice but to reduce our assistance to the refugees.”
Before the 60% cut, refugees in Rwanda were receiving a US$7.72 cash transfer a month to purchase food from local markets.
The 135,000 refugees in numerous camps in Rwanda are from Congo and Burundi and depend on humanitarian assistance in the form of a cash transfer to meet their basic food needs.
An amount of US$9 million was urgently required to avert reductions for March to June 2021, and a further US$20.6 million to continue their aid at its full allocation for July to December 2021.
However, the gap in funding needed was not generated, and the refugees, who fled violence in their respective countries, saw a drop from US$7.72 a month to US$3.04 a month, the BBC reported on Monday.
Refugees at Mahama refugee camp, located on the periphery of Tanzania’s border and its Kimisi Game Reserve but within Rwanda’s borders, as well as those at Kigeme refugee camp, close to Rwanda’s Nyungwe Forest National Park, were interviewed.
They said that hunger will kill them due to the cost of food at local markets and the reduced aid. There were also reports of suicide and attempted suicide due to the desperate situation.
Mahama refugee camp is home to more than 54,000 refugees and was established in 2015 by the Rwandan government and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
Kigeme refugee camp opened in 2012 in response to an influx of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and is now home to more than 75,000 refugees, according to the UNHCR.
Some international donors adhered to the WFP’s call, notably Canada, which donated US$794,000 to the 135,000 Congolese and Burundian refugees at camps in Rwanda in March 2021.
Overall, there were more than 270,000 beneficiaries of WFP assistance in Rwanda in 2020, according to WFP’s annual country report.
The majority of the beneficiaries were female, with the dominant age group being five to 11 years old.
More than US$12 million in cash was transferred to beneficiaries in 2020, which fell short of over US$19 million budgeted for cash transfers.
The dominant food items received by beneficiaries were a corn soya blend, as well as beans.
– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Yaron Blecher
