Uganda nears 2 million refugees amid regional crisis

Uganda is on the verge of hosting 2 million refugees as escalating crises in Sudan, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) drive hundreds of people to cross the border daily in search of safety and lifesaving aid.

More refugees seek safety in Africa's largest refugee-hosting country, Uganda, as funding cuts hamper humanitarian support in one of the worst funding crises in decades.

“We used to live in Khartoum, but we moved to Darfur because of the war. I'm with my daughters; my husband passed away. We have been here for three months. We have nothing, no money, the children are not in school, and they started getting sick. The situation here is really difficult,” said Hamida Ibrahim Amin, a newly arrived Sudanese refugee.

Since the start of 2025, an average of 600 people per day have arrived in the country, with numbers expected to reach 2 million by year's end.

Already Africa's largest refugee-hosting country and the third largest globally, Uganda is currently home to 1.93 million refugees, over a million of whom are below the age of 18. Yet, the humanitarian response currently faces one of the worst funding crises in decades, says UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.

Dominique Hyde, Director for External Relations, UNHCR, recently visited refugee settlements hosting Sudanese and South Sudanese in Uganda and warned that more children will die of malnutrition, more girls will fall victim to sexual violence, and families will be left without shelter or protection unless the world steps up, as emergency funding runs out in September.) :

“I'm in Kiryandongo in Uganda, where we have seen an increase in arrivals in the past month. The situation has become untenable; we simply don't have the resources for the basic needs, whether it's water or shelter. I'm seeing children that are malnourished, I'm seeing women that are desperate, having arrived here with almost nothing,” said Dominique.

Uganda's progressive refugee policy allows refugees to live, work, and access public services, but funding shortfalls are drastically impacting aid delivery and threaten to undo years of progress. Currently, refugees are only receiving a third of what they require to meet their basic needs annually.

"The emergency needs are massive, and we are simply not able to meet them. Whether its water whether its shelter whether its food, where its only 25 percent funded and it's not just about UNHCR, it's about the World Food program, it's about the other UN agencies it's about the government of Uganda and their generosity towards this population offering safety, offering a home, but without funding we are simply not able to help," said Dominique.

Food and medicine have drastically reduced, dangerously soaring malnutrition, particularly among children.

As resources continue to be stretched, refugees are being forced to make life-altering choices to survive, including dropping out of school. Reports of gender-based violence are on the rise as well as an increasing risk of suicide among refugee youth, amid a decline of mental healthcare staff.