The analysis from the Verification Exercise in Uganda indicates that a majority of the refugees who were absent, originate from South Sudan and arrived between 2016 and 2017.

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.

The Government of Uganda with the support of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, concluded a comprehensive exercise to verify the identities of all refugees and asylum-seekers in the country, using enhanced biometric tools.

From January to 30 September 2018 a total of 38,390 refugees were assisted to voluntarily repatriate to Burundi from Tanzania in 88 convoys (bringing the total from September 2017 to 52,260).

UNHCR TO COVER DRUGS GAPS IN REFUGEE CAMPS AND EL LERI SETTLEMENT TO THE END OF 2019; ADDITIONAL FUNDING STILL NEEDED – UNHCR is procuring essential drugs to address supply gaps in health clinics in refugee camps in White Nile and East Darfur States, and for the El Leri settlements in South Kordofan State. The procurement will cover essential drugs supply needs for one year, with an additional four months’ supply allocated as contingency stock. Funding is urgently needed to cover drugs supply gaps in other out-of-camp refugee settlements in all States across the response.

OCTOBER SEES LOWEST NEW ARRIVALS IN 2018 SO FAR – January saw the highest number of new arrivals in 2018 with nearly 5,800 individuals, and arrivals have been in steady decline since, with just 721 arrivals in October, including zero new arrivals reported in East Darfur State. Inter-agency partners agreed in July to revise new arrival estimates for 2018 to 50,000 by year-end, from an original estimate of 200,000, following the notably slower rate of new arrivals in the first half of the year.

LARGE INTERNAL REFUGEE MOVEMENTS OBSERVED WITH START OF HARVEST SEASON – In White Nile State, the Government of Sudan’s Commission for Refugees (COR) estimates that at least 50,000 refugees are working on farms outside of the camps. Refugee schools in camps are temporarily closed, and will reopen in November, when families are anticipated to return to camps. Education partners and the State Ministry of Education agreed in September to adjust the school calendar to address low attendance rates anticipated during the harvest season. In East Darfur, a 10 per cent reduction in attendance to therapeutic and supplementary feeding nutrition programmes in camps has been observed. Where possible, programming is being adapted so beneficiaries can still receive sufficient nutrition support.

In Uganda, limited resources means not having enough staff to ensure quality of child protection services and adequate follow up on children in care arrangements. There is one caseworker for every 150 children, and children make up some 63 per cent of the refugee population.

In Uganda’s Nakivale settlement thousands of refugee families are using overcrowded communal latrines, with risk of disease outbreaks, little privacy, and exposure of women and children in particular to protection risks.

7% of South Sudanese refugees currently live in semi-permanent shelters in the region.