UGANDA Northern Uganda briefing paper May 2006 I. ADMINISTRATIVE DISTRICTS - REGIONS AFFECTED BY HUMANITARIAN CRISIS S U D A N. Kitgum. Gulu.

Transcription

1 I. ADMINISTRATIVE DISTRICTS - REGIONS AFFECTED BY HUMANITARIAN CRISIS S U D A N Koboko Yumbe Moyo Kitgum Kaabong Arua Adjumani Gulu Pader Kotido Nebbi Moroto Kasese Bundibugyo Kabarole Ibanda L. Albert L. Albert D E M. R E P. C O N G O Kamwenge Hoima Masindi Kiboga Kibaale Kyenjojo Mubende Mityana Mpigi Sembalule Nakaseke Nakasongola Lira Apac Luwero Amolotar L. Kyoga L. Kyoga Soroti Kaliro Amuria Kumi Pallisa Butaleja Mukono Bugiri Kiruhura Kayunga Mukono Kampala Wakiso Kaberamaido Kamuli Katakwi Mbale Iganga Tororo Jinja Busia Mayuge Sironko Nakapiripirit Kapchorwa Manafwa Bukwo K E N Y A Kanungu Rukungiri Bushenyi Ntungamo Kisoro Kabale Mbarara Isingiro Masaka Kalangala Rakai T A N Z A N I A L. Victoria R W A N D A

2 II. BASIC INDICATORS Indicators Nationwide Human development index rank (UNDP, 2005) 144 (of 177) Northern Uganda Illiteracy rate - % (UNDP, 2005) % population living below poverty line, (UNDP, 2005) 56.0 n/a % population living below poverty line, 2003 (UNDP, 2005) % population not expected to live to age 40 (UNDP, 2005) Moderate malnutrition among children - % (Ministry of Health, 2003) HIV/AIDS prevalence rate (Ministry of Health, 2005) Population with out access to safe water - % (UNDP, 2005) III. HUMANITARIAN SITUATION At present, four main issues are of concern for the humanitarian action and programmes in Uganda : 1) Continued displacement of approximately 1. 8 million persons in Acholi region (Gulu, Kitgum and Pader districts), parts of Adjumani district, Lango region (Apac and Lira districts) and parts of Teso region (particularly in Katakwi district). Living conditions in the majority of displacement camps remain extremely precarious, despite the increased intervention of the humanitarian community (36 NGOs and the UN agencies). T hus, these overcrowded camps are prone to recurrent disease outbreaks (meningitis and cholera outbreaks since January 2006), wildfires during the dry season and human rights abuses, from both Lord s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan People Defense Force (UPDF) /Local Defense Units (LDU), including sexual and gender -based violence. Giovanni Diffidenti/OCHA The 2005 Mortality Survey carried out in Gulu, Kitgum and Pader districts in July 2005 (Ministry of Health, WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, WFP, IRC) estimates crude and under -5 mortality rates at 1.54/10,000/day and 3.18/10,000/day respectively, well in excess of the emergency threshold of 1/10,000/day. Survey findings also indicate that the leading causes of mortality are malaria, diarrhea, violence and HIV/AIDS. Malnutrition, HIV/AIDS and limited access to quality health services compound the problem. 2) Return of displaced population in Teso region (Soroti, Kaberamaido, Amuria and Katakwi districts) and southern parts of Lango region (Apac and Lira districts) Recent estimates (District Disaster Management Committees, WFP, OCHA) indicate that 393,000 persons have returned home in Lango and Teso regions. These include 81,000 persons in Amuria district, 68,000 in Katakwi, 114,000 in Kaberamaido, 99,000 in Soroti and 31,000 in the Dokolo and Bata sub-counties in Lira district. In 2005, at least 60,000 people moved f rom the urban displacement camps in Lira town to rural ones closer to their original homes. This constitute a gradual or phased return. A series of joint assessments of return areas were conducted in April 2006 in order to evaluate the needs for early reco very assistance to those who have already returned as well as organised return for those who have expressed the wish to return. Early recovery interventions will span from 6 to 18 months and focus on improving access to basic services and livelihood in are as of return. Preliminary

3 assessment findings point to the following: lack of teachers in schools due to lack of staff housing, lack of equipment and school materials; extremely poor condition of the health services including need to refurbish the infrastr ucture, lack of staff and staff housing, and an appalling lack of medical equipment underpin all the health cent re assessed. The absence of micro -credit facilities in all but one of the 22 parishes assessed (and the reported difficulty in understanding the mechanisms to access facilities when existing) results in overwhelming reliance on agriculture. Finally, the lack of trained personnel dealing with justice and civilian police throughout the district is an area of concern. 3) Cattle-rustling and ethnic tension in Karamoja region (Kotido, Moroto, and Nakapiripirit districts) Internal displacement spills over into eastern parts of Teso region (Soroti, Amuria and Katakwi districts), Pader and Kitgum district s, and hampering durable return of displaced populations in Katakwi district. The fear of Karimojong warriors, as they are known locally, is prevalent among displaced and returned population of neighbouring districts. Escorts from local militias and LDUs are often necessary for the population to graze their cattle or collect wood for cooking fires. Giovanni Diffidenti/OCHA In the Karamoja region, WFP estimates that 70,000 people will continue to receive food assistance including to schools and girls receiving take -home rations. However, approximately 150,000 people are considered highly vulnerable due to recurr ing violence, food insecurity and high disease incidence, with only 3% of the whole population in the sub -region having access to adequate sanitation and less than 30% with access to education facilities. 4) Refugees: 177,000 mainly from Sudan in West Nile sub -region and 61,000 from DRC, Sudan and Rwanda in Western districts. Uganda hosts 172,312 southern Sudanese refugees. In January 2006, UNHCR started registering refugees who wished to return voluntarily. By mid-february, 27,000 had been registered but due to funding constrains and security deteriorating rapidly in southern Sudan, only 5,000 persons will be repatriated in the coming months. The first 160 refugees w ere repatriated on 2 May. In January and February a massive influx of Congolese crossing into Uganda was registered, largely over 20,000. A total of 3,046 asylum seekers have been relocated to refugee settlements. The phenomenon of Congolese seeking safety overnight on the Ugandan side of the border ha s increased reports mention up to 10,000 persons at a time. Their presence has stretched the hosting capacity of the border areas in terms of water, sanitation and shelter. IV. ACCESS AND SECURITY Since the last quarter of 2005, the security situation in con flict-affected districts had been characterized by constant fluctuations in numbers of LRA attacks, varying in scope and intensity, thus creating pockets of insecurity in the Acholi region and northern Lango sub-region. However, the overall number of incidents involving the LRA is clearly on the decrease in This situation has prompted a review by the UPDF of the security arrangements for the security to humanitarian workers and access to IDP camps in Northern Uganda, namely the provision of military escorts system that had been put in place in the wake of the November 2005

4 attacks on humanitarian workers. Overall, effective from April 2006, scaled down military escorts only apply to the delivery of food aid by WFP and non -food items by agencies and NG Os to displacement camps as well as emergency interventions in the camps. 42 displacement camps in 4 districts (Gulu, kitgum, Pader and Lira) still require military escort to be accessed by UN agencies while 103 can be accessed without. Movement restrictions remain in place for displaced populations, thus limiting their movements outside the camps to a few hours a day. In general, IDPs are allowed to move out between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. and within a radius of 2-5km out of camps. Access to farmland, fir ewood collection, hunting and other livelihood activities carried out in the bush are mostly affected. No LRA-related security incidents have been recorded in Teso region this year. Nevertheless, the Karimojong who have traditionally engaged in cattle -stealing raids, crossed to Teso and Lango regions as well as Kitgum and Pader districts in January -February 2006, in search of water and pasture. Clashes with the UPDF and militias have been frequent since the beginning of the year. V. INTERNALLY DISPLACED P ERSONS AND RETURN PROCESS Two types of movement of population in northern Uganda must be differentiated : 1) an ongoing return of displaced population in Lango and Teso regions, and 2) an apprehensive movements of some people outside displacement camps in Ac holi region. 1) Return of displaced population in Lango and Teso regions. Recent estimates from District Disaster Management Committees, WFP and OCHA indicate that 362,000 persons have returned home, without the full return package contemplated in the IDP Policy but just food assistance from WFP, in Teso region since the end of These include 8 1,000 persons in Amuria, 68,000 in Katakwi, 114,000 in Kaberamaido and 99,000 in Soroti districts. OCHA, in consultation with partners, will conduct rapid needs assessment in May to determine remaining levels of vulnerability among the returned and still displaced population in the Teso region. Return in the Lango region, in particular in Lira district is slower with 31,000 people having returned in the Dokolo and Bata sub-counties. In total, approximately 100,000 IDPs are expected to return within six months. Approximately 250,000 IDPs remain in displacement camps in the northern part of the district, less secure than south Lira, and it is generally accepted that they are not likely to move before the end of the year. The Inter-Agency assessments led by UNHCR in December 2005 and by the DDMC in Lira district in March 2006 confirmed more than 55% of partial or permanent return among the population in the central part of the district, including southern Apala, Barr, Amugu and Abako sub counties. The assessment identified three displacement camps (Obim Rock, Abako and Alanyi) where more than 70% of the huts had been abandoned and the occupants had either temporary or permanently returned to their villages. In these displacement camps WFP will conduct a three month ration distribution to 35,000 IDPs to encourage further access to gardens. 2) Movement outside displacement camps in Acholi. A series of inter-agency assessment have been conducted in April in Kitgum and Gulu districts in order to examine the status of population movements. These movements outside displacement camps to settlement sites, described by district and national authorities as camp decongestion, do not constitute a process of return to areas of origin. Whereas the Government s decongestion process was considered necessary only in case of an emergency need for immediate improvement of living conditions in the most overcrowded camps, setting up new camps with almost equally unsustainable conditions does not amount to return. Findings of the assessments point to the following: Perceived improvement of security conditions and the onset of the planting season are the main factors triggering movements f rom displacement camps to settlement sites/satellite camps). The search for expanded access to arable land is the main motivating factor indicated by displaced families during rapid assessments conducted in the Acholi districts.

5 Sources of information used by displaced families prior to the decision to move are: the camp commandant, the LC, family/clan members, the radio and, in some instances the UPDF. Movements have been voluntary. However, almost all sites for settlements were selected by the UPDF alone and on the basis of strategic and security considerations. The sites do not always correspond with the parish administrative unit and in most cases the settlement site is not families homestead but a location closer to zones of origin than the displa cement camp. Security arrangements existing in the settlement sites do not differ from those in place in the displacement camps: security perimeters and curfews are maintained. While the majority of people interviewed found that security was better in the new settlement than previously, the fear of abduction remains strong. Houses are being built although thatch is not available during this season and will not be until October, at the earliest. The onset of the rainy season now makes living with inadequate roofing difficult and therefore people tend to maintain their huts in the displacement camp. All basic social services are still being delivered back at the displacement camps (food distribution, primary healthcare and education). In some cases, the sma ll number of people in settlement sites makes service delivery planning and provision on site unsustainable. The numbers of persons that have moved outside displacement camps so far is extremely low. Roughly 10,000 in Gulu district (100 households in 10 different settlement sites) out of a total displaced population of 463,000 - and 4,000 in Kitgum district out of a total displaced population of 310,000. These are preliminary figures and should only be taken as indicative. The estimated number of displace d people in Uganda is as follows: District # of camps # of IDPs Displacement camps Settlement sites with people GoU RRR Strategic Plan Nov 05 (1) OCHA in consultation with partners April 05 (2) Gulu , ,000* Kitgum , ,140* Pader , ,000* Acholi region total 1,092,226 1,093,140 Lira , ,441* Apac ,050 98,193 Lango region total 471, ,634 Soroti 2 14,000 7,455 Katakwi & Amuria , ,353 Kaberamaido 2 2,871 2,203 Teso region total 264, ,011 Adjumani 41,005 41,005* Masindi 66,116** National total 219 1,909,880 1,826,906

6 NOTES to the chart: (1): National Return, Resettlement and Re-integration Strategic Plan, Office of the Prime Minister, Government of Uganda, November (2) A comprehensive update and cleaning of figures is being carried out by OCHA, UN Agencies and NGOs working in the districts. The figures shown in this table are as of April (*) Planning figures for 2006, WFP/Uganda, (**) IDP population assessment, International Office of Migration (IOM/Uganda), March VI. NIGHT COMMUTERS The downward trend in the number of night commuters continues since mid The main reasons for this trend are the perceived improvements in the security situation among displaced families as well as efforts by the humanitarian community to shift the delivery of assistance to the community level rather than at night commuter centres. In February 2006, the UPDF had suggested closing the centres in Gulu district. The humanitarian community as well as civilian district authorities opted for a progressive phasing out instead. Giovanni Diffidenti/OCHA Estimated numbers daily night commuters are as follow : Kitgum district Gulu district Pader (Kalongo) Total Adults Children Total Adults Children Total Adults Children Total Aug-05 8,429 8,429 12,250 12,250 6, ,918 27,597 Sept 8,014 8,014 8,908 8,908 1,023 2,920 3,943 20,865 Oct 4,880 8,539 13,419 8,542 8,542 1,119 1,770 2,889 24,850 Nov 2,491 8,728 11,219 7,869 7, ,550 3,388 22,476 Dec 2,160 6,867 9,027 6,753 6,753 4,014 4,091 8,105 23,885 Jan-06 2,160 6,277 8,437 7,313 7,313 5,544 21,294 Feb 2,070 7,093 9,163 6,611 6,611 2,319 2,453 4,772 20,546 March 2,334 4,296 6,650 6,367 6,367 1,122 2,797 3,313 16,330 April 2,014 4,704 6,718 5,884 5,884 4,292 16,894

7 VII. FUNDING OF HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE Cap funding requirements and contributions: The revision of the Consolidated Appeal Process CAP 2006 was finalised in April Requirements and financial coverage stand as follow: Sector Original Requirement Revised Requirement Agriculture 5,187,178 5,187,178 Coordination and Supp. Serv. 5,825,266 6,294,066 Economic Rec. and Infrastructure 2,600,142 8,058,251 Education 11,164,512 15,896,512 Food 111,397, ,787,088 Health 33,249,648 40,890,298 Mine Action 2,437,000 4,945,915 Multi-Sector 17,798,660 20,587,556 Protection/H. Rights/Rule of Law 15,617,231 23,875,215 Security 135, ,154 Shelter and Non Food Items 5,130,000 5,130,000 Water and Sanitation 12,060,813 10,324,813 Grand Total 222,603, ,017,046 Year of Original Requirements Yearly increment Revised Requirements Funding Funding % Appeal US$ % US$ US$ , ,114,892 42,503, ,538, ,135, ,417, ,901, ,880, ,413, ,686, ,777, ,733,

8 VIII. ANNEXE DISPLACED POPULATION IN NORTHERN UGANDA APRIL 2006 Total estimated displaced persons: 1,826,906 N Kitgum 310, Camps Kitgum Kampala Adjumani 41,005(*) Adjumani Kitgum Maps and distances not in scale Adjumani Pader Pader 320, camps Gulu 463, Camps Masindi 66,116(*) LEGEND: Gulu Masindi Gulu Apac Apac Apac 98, Camps Lira Kaberamaido 2,203 2 Camps Pader Lira Kaberamaido Kaberamaido Soroti Soroti Lira 350, Camps Amuria Amuria Soroti 7,455 2 camps Katakwi and Amuria 168, Camps Katakwi Katakwi IDPs in camps receiving relief food aid in ,443,581 IDPs in camps not receiving relief food aid - 276,204 Adjumani and Masindi - 107,121 (* - IDP population living with host community) SOURCE(S): Districts Authorities WFP OCHA UNHCR IOM NGOS