Global Humanitarian and Development Foundation Response in Reception Centers and Refugee Camps

In line with our mission of helping the most vulnerable communities, GHDF continues providing services and assistance to refugees and returnees living in Transit Centers, Reception Centers and Refugee Camps in Rwanda. While the principal refugee influx has been coming from Burundi since 2015, reaching over 88 500 people in November 2017, close to 75,000 refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are also living in Rwanda at this moment (UNHCR Factsheet, November 2017). Furthermore, close to 15 000 Rwandans living abroad have returned and been received with the support of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in 2017. Although the number of refugees coming from Burundi has significantly decreased in 2017, small numbers of people are still crossing the border every month to seek protection in Rwanda. The Mahama Refugee Camp is currently hosting more than 54,000 Burundians and this population is still growing due to the new arrivals and new-borns. On the DRC’s side, the situation has remained more or less stable throughout the past year, but tensions are still being felt due the DRC president’s reluctance to leave power and their government’s inability to organize legitimate elections. Due to this disturbance, the government of Rwanda’s Ministry of Refugee Affairs (MINEMA), UNHCR, GHDF and other partners remain attentive and prepared for a potential influx in 2018. Simultaneously, Rwandan citizens returning from abroad are also provided shelter and support in Transit and Reception Centers before they can find a safe place to stay. In order to respond to the basic needs of these refugees and returnees, and to preserve their dignity, GHDF continues facilitating their access to potable water, constructing shelters and sanitation facilities, conducting hygiene promotion campaigns, and managing the waste in Reception Centers (Bugesera, Nyanza, Kijote, Gatore) and Refugee Camps (Mahama and Kigeme).

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