Building sustainable synergies for refugees

In Uganda, the number of refugees hosted in the various urban and refugee settlements stands at over 1,000,000 persons. The Government of Uganda in partnership with Civil Society Organizations continue to deliver services to improve the socio - economic well-being of refugees and host communities in areas of; health, education, livelihoods, child protection, resettlement to mention but a few.

In spite of the various interventions fronted by different actors, gaps still exist. Lack of adequate resources and limited access to available opportunities make it difficult for the refugees and host communities to build sustainable livelihoods. Access to Education for all children of school going age needs to be improved through increased availability of learning facilities, materials, instructors and other related factors. In addition, some of the livelihood programme interventions implemented have limited local market contextual information thereby inhibiting the ability of communities to tap into the appropriate available opportunities.

Children being provided with books, pens and other scholastic items to aid their studies

In response to above challenges, UWESO partnered with United Arab Emirates(UAE) AID through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MOFAIC) to implement a project on empowering refugee and host community households through economic empowerment programs, access to safe water, child protection and education among other interventions through a project titled; "Advancing Rights and Opportunities to Education for Vulnerable Children" (AROC) implemented in Mbarara and Isingiro Districts.