Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement
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Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp in
Kamwenge District Kamwenge District is a Districts of Uganda, district in Western Region, Uganda, Western Uganda. It is named after its 'chief town', Kamwenge, where the district headquarters are located. Kamwenge District is part of the Toro Kingdom, Kingdom of T ...
in southwestern
Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
and is home to nearly 70,000
refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...
s.


History

Rwamwanja settlement was established in 1964 to host refugees from
Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...
and closed in 1995. The Rwamwanja camp is managed by the
UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and Humanitarian protection, protect refugees, Internally displaced person, forcibly displaced communities, and Statelessness, s ...
and the
Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
n Office of the
Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
's Department of Refugees (OPM). Services to refugees are implemented by a host of "implementing partner"
NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
s, principally the
Lutheran World Federation The Lutheran World Federation (LWF; ) is a global Communion (religion), communion of national and regional Lutheran denominations headquartered in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The federation was founded in the Swedish city of L ...
, the Windle Charitable Trust,
Africa Humanitarian Action Africa Humanitarian Action (AHA) is a non-governmental organization that provides relief services to countries in Africa. It was founded by Dr. David Zawde in 1994 in response to the Rwandan genocide. In 1994, the Rwandan genocide occurred. Hund ...
and African Initiative for Relief Development. Most of the current residents of the Rwamwanja settlement are Congolese nationals who fled the
M23 rebellion M23 rebellion or M23 campaign may refer to: * M23 rebellion (2012–2013), an armed conflict in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo * M23 campaign (2022–present), an offensive in North Kivu against the Armed Forces of the Democratic Re ...
and the broader
Kivu conflict The Kivu conflict is an umbrella term for a series of protracted armed conflicts in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo which have occurred since the end of the Second Congo War. Including ...
beginning in early 2012.


Social services

Accessing land within the Rwamwanja settlement, is 92% where the shelter is located where as 13% of the population access land in a separate plot. There are more than 280 U-reporters in the settlement, a system that allows refugees and host communities to exchange information in the camp. Trained to expand their rice and pepper harvests, Congolese refugees in Uganda use earnings to start new businesses and become more self-reliant with the support rendered by the implementing organizations and humanitarian bodies in the Rwamwanja
refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...
settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), downward movement of a structure's foundation *Settlement (finance), where securities are delivered against payment of money *Settlement (litigatio ...
. There is a building of a 10,000-tree native food forest at the Rwamwanja
Refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...
Settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), downward movement of a structure's foundation *Settlement (finance), where securities are delivered against payment of money *Settlement (litigatio ...
in
Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
. The settlement which houses over 70,000 refugees, most with little food access or employment opportunities is an immediate beneficiary to this long-term project for the benefit of the refugees as well as the Host Community. The food forest will employ refugees, provide healthy food sources, and decrease
soil degradation Soil retrogression and degradation are two regressive evolution processes associated with the loss of equilibrium of a soil health, stable soil. Retrogression is primarily due to soil erosion and corresponds to a phenomenon where succession revert ...
. With a 100-acre piece of land already donated, fundraising for income for the refugee forest workers, tools, and seedlings is underway and on process to see to it that the implementation and success of this is seen and recorded..


Water and sanitation

In 2013, Rwamwanja had 55 functional
borehole A borehole is a narrow shaft bored in the ground, either vertically or horizontally. A borehole may be constructed for many different purposes, including the extraction of water ( drilled water well and tube well), other liquids (such as petr ...
s and shallow
well A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...
s providing clean and safe water to the refugees.51 of these were installed with handpumps, while 4 are motorized with pipeline distribution to 11 tap stand locations (40 water taps). Water coverage at the end of 2013 was 13 liters per person per day. Rainwater harvesting is also done at all health centers, schools and reception Centers


Education

In 2013, there were 20 early childhood development centers and child friendly spaces that were run by Windle Trust Uganda (WTU) and
Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...
. At the time were 5 primary schools in the settlement, 3 of which are run by UNHCR/WTU: Rwamwanja primary, Mahani primary, Nteziryayo primary and the newest – Kyempango primary and 1 secondary school.
UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and Humanitarian protection, protect refugees, Internally displaced person, forcibly displaced communities, and Statelessness, s ...
, through WTU, recruited 100 trained
teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...
s across the settlement. Child rights clubs have been set up in 5 schools in Rwamwanja (Mahani primary, Nteziryayo primary, Rwamwanja primary, Nkoma church of Uganda primary and Rwamwanja secondary) along with Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) and School Management Committees (SMCs). 8,135 refugee children were enrolled in 2013, giving 77% of the total number of school going age enrolled in primary education.


Sports activities


Housing and property

According to REACH reports, 81% of shelter tenure is owned by the head of the household, 13% owned jointly between
household A household consists of one or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...
member. 5% rented and 1% owned by neighbors (rent free). In May 2019, 30% of the households reported owning no property at all out of 70% who do not have access to the property in the refugee camp. This is an indicator that the property owned at the refugee camp at Rwamwanja is closed to and restricted only to Ugandan Host community.


References


External links

{{commons category, Rwamwanja refugee camp Refugee camps in Uganda Kamwenge District Populated places in Western Region, Uganda Populated places in Africa