Maaji refugee settlements

Last updated
Maaji
Refugee camps
Coordinates: 3°13′N31°39′E / 3.22°N 31.65°E / 3.22; 31.65
Country Uganda
Region Northern Region
Sub-region West Nile sub-region
District Adjumani
Initially established1997
Re-opened2015
Area
[1]
 • Total572 ha (1,413 acres)
 From UNHCR maps
Population
 (June 2018) [2]
 • Total41,764
 • Density7,300/km2 (19,000/sq mi)
 (Only registered refugees counted)
Time zone UTC+03:00 (East Africa Time)
A house hold in a refugee camp in Uganda The layout of a home at Rhino Camp.jpg
A house hold in a refugee camp in Uganda

The Maaji refugee settlements are three refugee camps located in Adjumani District in the Northern Region of Uganda, established in 1997. In June 2018, there were 41,764 registered refugees, accounting for 10% of the district's total population. [2] It has primarily admitted refugees from the Second Sudanese Civil War and the ongoing South Sudanese Civil War. The settlements have been attacked several times by the Lord's Resistance Army, along with other camps in the region such as the Baratuku refugee settlement.

Contents

Location and population

The refugee settlements are located in Adjumani District, within the West Nile sub-region of north-western Uganda, which borders South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [2] They cover a total of 572 hectares (1,410 acres) of land. Maaji I has an area of 33 ha (82 acres) and is split into 2 blocks, Maaji II has an area of 278 ha (690 acres) in 6 blocks, and Maaji III covers 261 ha (640 acres) in 4 blocks. [1] [3]

In September 2017, there were a total of 34,657 registered refugees in the settlements: 671 in Maaji I, 17,364 in Maaji II, and 16,622 in Maaji III, all South Sudanese. [3] The total population increased by 7,107 (20.5%) to 41,764 by June 2018. [2]

History

In 1997, the three Maaji refugee settlements (I, II, and III) were established to receive the influx of refugees due to the Second Sudanese Civil War. [2]

In 2002 and 2003, the rebel group Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) conducted many attacks in north-western Uganda, which housed over 100,000 refugees at the time. [4] [5] In one case, on 8 July 2002, approximately 200 rebels from the LRA attacked the Maaji settlements. In two hours, they killed and abducted five refugees each. They also burned and looted 126 houses, as well as classrooms and a grinding mill. [5] [6] An entire site was reportedly destroyed, its health centre having been robbed of drugs and equipment. The day later, hundreds of refugees attempted to walk the 45 kilometres (28 mi) to the town of Adjumani. [5] The Maaji camps had approximately 11,000 residents in 2002. [5]

Maaji II and III were later reopened in 2015 to accommodate new arrivals from the South Sudanese Civil War. The camp was reportedly no longer receiving new arrivals by September 2017, though efforts are still being made to improve the well-being of residents. [3]

Social services

Refugees waiting at a health center in the settlement Maaji refugees.jpg
Refugees waiting at a health center in the settlement

In 2019, a project by World Vision International (WVI), in collaboration with the United Nation Development Programme, was started in Maaji II. The project aimed to promote coexistence between tribes within the settlement by providing road construction jobs (in a "cash for work" program) to selected vulnerable families. According to WVI, 130 people from the settlement and host community benefitted, although many people not part of the project still hold grudges. [7] Another project in Maaji II, by the Women's International Peace Centre supported by the UNHCR and local governments, attempted to address conflicts primarily between the Nuer and Dinka. This project aimed to settle the causes of conflict and held mediation sessions with leaders as well as children. The district later reported improved relations between the communities within the settlement. [8]


Facilities

According to a 2018 UNHCR report, the quality of education has been affected by the scarcity of educational facilities and teachers in the area. There are no pre-primary schools within the settlement, while tuition fees for secondary schools are unfeasible for parents. [2]

Refugee children coming form school in Uganda South sudanese refugee children coming form school near a home stead.jpg
Refugee children coming form school in Uganda

The report also stated that health services available at the camp are significantly affected. The lack of health facilities, resources, and workers causes congestion and long waiting hours at the health center. [2]

The report stated that the Maaji refugees were faced with some challenges which include; lack of employment and limited access to building materials, preventing the renovation and rehabilitation of their shelters [9]

Climatic change

Many Organizations and different partners ensure that almost every part of refugee camp is planted with trees that Will protect the settlement from heavy rainfall and wind

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Refugee camp</span> Temporary settlement for refugees

A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced people. Usually, refugees seek asylum after they have escaped war in their home countries, but some camps also house environmental and economic migrants. Camps with over a hundred thousand people are common, but as of 2012, the average-sized camp housed around 11,400. They are usually built and run by a government, the United Nations, international organizations, or non-governmental organization. Unofficial refugee camps, such as Idomeni in Greece or the Calais jungle in France, are where refugees are largely left without the support of governments or international organizations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adjumani District</span> District in Northern Region, Uganda

Adjumani District is a district in Northern Uganda. Like most other Ugandan districts, it is named after its 'chief town', Adjumani, where the district headquarters are located.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gulu</span> City in northern Uganda

Gulu is a city in the Northern Region of Uganda. It is the commercial and administrative centre of Gulu District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dungu, Democratic Republic of the Congo</span> Place in Haut-Uele, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Dungu is a town in Haut-Uele Province located at the confluence of the Dungu and Kibali Rivers where they join to form the Uele River, south of the Garamba National Park. Dungu's terrain is wooded savannah, and its climate is tropical.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Christmas massacres</span> 2008 attacks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The 2008 Christmas massacres took place on 24–27 December 2008, when the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan rebel group, attacked several villages in Haut-Uele District, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The massacres were the fifth deadliest acts of terrorism in world history.

Sudanese refugees are persons originating from the country of Sudan, but seeking refuge outside the borders of their native country. In recent history, Sudan has been the stage for prolonged conflicts and civil wars, as well as environmental changes, namely desertification. These forces have resulted not only in violence and famine but also the forced migration of large numbers of the Sudanese population, both inside and outside the country's borders. Given the expansive geographic territory of Sudan, and the regional and ethnic tensions and conflicts, much of the forced migration in Sudan has been internal. Yet, these populations are not immune to similar issues that typically accompany refugeedom, including economic hardship and providing themselves and their families with sustenance and basic needs. With the creation of a South Sudanese state, questions surrounding southern Sudanese IDPs may become questions of South Sudanese refugees.

Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp in Bweyale in Kiryandongo district Uganda.

South Sudanese refugees are persons originating from the African country of South Sudan, but seeking refuge outside the borders of their native country. The world's youngest independent country has a recent and troubled history of prolonged conflicts and ecosystem mismanagement such as overlogging, which has led to desertification. These forces have resulted not only in violence and famine, but also the forced migration of large numbers of the population, both inside and outside the country's borders. South Sudan was cited as the largest refugee crisis in 2016, being the world's third largest, followed by Syria and Afghanistan. As of 2022, the UNHCR estimated that there were 2.4 million refugees under its mandate originating from South Sudan, making the country the fifth largest source of refugees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement</span> Refugee camp in Uganda

Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp in the districts of Madi-Okollo and Terego in northwestern Uganda. It was opened in 1980 and expanded in the wake of the South Sudanese civil war to host the sudden influx of refugees into Northern Uganda. As of January 2018, the settlement had 123,243 registered refugees, mostly South Sudanese, and continues to receive new arrivals.

Pagirinya Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp in Eastern Adjumani District in Northern Uganda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bidibidi Refugee Settlement</span> Place in Yumbe, Uganda

Bidibidi Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp in the Yumbe District of northwestern Uganda. Home to over 270,000 South Sudanese refugees fleeing the ongoing civil war in early 2017, it was among the largest refugee settlements in the world at the time, and may have been the largest. As of 2018, that distinction was claimed by Kutupalong refugee camp for displaced Rohingya in Bangladesh.

Nyumanzi Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp in Adjumani District in northwestern Uganda. Established in 2014, it hosts about 52,000 South Sudanese refugees.

The Palorinya Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp in the Moyo District of the Northern Region of Uganda. The majority of the population fled the civil crisis in South Sudan in 2016.

The Elema Refugee Settlement is a refugee settlement in Adjumani district, westnile sub-region of Uganda. Elema was established in 1992 and stands to be the oldest refugee settlement out of the total of nine settlement in Adjumani district. The settlement is composed entirely of refugees from the Kuku tribe of South Sudan. The Kuku speak a Bari dialect, also called Kuku. They are chiefly a farming people relying on mixed farming. Following a UNHCR-led repatriation of South Sudanese refugees in 2008 from Uganda, the Kuku ethnic group in Elema declined to be repatriated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alere 2 Refugee settlement</span> Refugee camp in Uganda

Alere 2 Refugee Settlement is located in Adjumani District in the Northern Region of Uganda.

Mungula II Refugee Settlement is a refugee camp found in Adjumani District Itirikwa subcounty in Northern Uganda.

Olua I Refugee settlement is a refugee camp in eastern Adjumani District in Northern Uganda. The Refugee settlement has its primary country as Uganda and other country south Sudan.

Oliji refugee settlement is a refugee camp in Adjumani District of Uganda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boroli refugee settlement</span>

Boroli refugee settlement is a refugee camp located in the Pakele Sub County of Adjumani District Northern Region, of Uganda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ayilo 2 refugee settlement</span>

Ayilo 2 refugee settlement is one of the refugee camps in Adjumani District in the Northern Region of Uganda.

References

  1. 1 2 Maps from the UNHCR:
    • United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (1 March 2018). Maaji I Refugee Settlement Map Adjumani (Map).
    • United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (1 March 2018). Maaji II Refugee Settlement Map Adjumani (Map).
    • United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (1 March 2018). Maaji III Refugee Settlement Map Adjumani (Map).
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Uganda Refugee Response Monitoring: Settlement Fact Sheet: Maaji (June 2018) - Uganda". ReliefWeb. Retrieved 2020-10-01.
  3. 1 2 3 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Uganda Refugee Response Monitoring: Settlement Fact Sheet: Maaji I, II, III". ReliefWeb. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  4. ↑ Mutuli, Millicent (27 June 2003). "Feature: Sudanese refugees running out of options in Ugandan camp". United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees . Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Mutuli, Millicent (10 July 2002). "UNHCR condemns rebel attack on refugee settlement in Uganda". United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees . Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  6. ↑ "Uganda: Relief efforts hampered in one of the world's worst internal displacement crises" (PDF). ReliefWeb. Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre. 12 December 2005. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  7. ↑ "Livelihoods project unites South Sudanese refugees in Uganda". www.wvi.org. Retrieved 2020-10-01.
  8. ↑ "Mediation dialogue in Maaji 2 refugee settlement".
  9. ↑ "Uganda Refugee Response Monitoring: Settlement Fact Sheet: Maaji (June 2018) - Uganda | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.