Two (2) refugees are elected to Uganda’s highest decision-making body for comprehensive responses. 2 out of 37 seats in the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) Steering Committee are reserved for refugees, with a view to involve them in the strategic direction and key decisions on the CRRF in Uganda.

Both UNHCR Burundi and Tanzania operations are in need of additional resources to scale up the operation to reach 2,000 returnees per week as agreed to at the March 2018 Tripartite Commission meeting, as well as to continue attending to the humanitarian needs of refugees in Tanzania and to support returnees in Burundi.

UNHCR High profile supporter, model and photographer Helena Christensen is calling for urgent funding and global attention for Burundian refugees living in Rwanda following a trip with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.

The Regional Child Protection Network held an Information Sharing Session on Child Protection Responses to the Burundi and South Sudan Crises. The theme was 'The Critical Importance of Child Protection in Refugee Situations'.

Since 2014, UNHCR, in partnership with Safe from the Start, an anti-SGBV initiative supported by the US Government, has developed 15 new projects to reduce the risk of SGBV through access to cooking energy and the creation of livelihood opportunities for refugee women.

One of our anti-SGBV Initiatives is the MADE51. This artisan initiative allows refugee artisans, many of them women at risk of SGBV, to receive expert product development support and access to international marketing channels and sustainable livelihoods.

Some 411 Burundians registered for training on business skills and access to finance launched by INKOMOKO Business Development for the 2019 cohort programme. The programme aims at bolstering the capacities of refugees to run businesses and contribute economically to the communities where they are integrated.

In Lusenda and Mulongwe settlements the stocks of essential medicine remains severely depleted due to the underfunding for the Burundian situation. As result, refugees have experienced a reduction in the quality of care and there have been more frequent referrals to secondary health structures.

In October, a special examination for Burundian refugees enrolled in the secondary school has been administered by the National Examination Council of Tanzania (NECTA) in all three refugee camps of Mtendeli, Nduta and Nyarugusu. Out of 959 registered Burundian students, 921 (96 per cent) attended the examination, which provides a recognized certificate by countries in the region and ensures continuity of education beyond secondary school in Tanzania.

In Uganda, refugees from South Sudan continue to report fleeing primarily out of fear of attack by fighters from either side of the conflict inside the country.