[{"bbox": [97, 153, 1133, 207], "category": "Text", "text": "IMF extended credit facility of USD 1Bn was approved in July 2021 and the review is currently ongoing. Macroeconomic risks are linked to high inflation and rising borrowing costs."}, {"bbox": [97, 218, 1133, 431], "category": "Text", "text": "As highlighted by Uganda's Foreign Minister during his recent visit to EU, the integration of refugees from neighboring countries is facing increasing challenges. The high number of refugees, including an unprecedented inflow from DRC, puts pressure on natural resources and social services, in some cases creating tensions with the host communities. In addition to the gradual reduction of humanitarian funding, it puts at risk Uganda's open-door policy. Uganda remains an important player in the region, and the accession of DRC to EAC has created a political momentum for reinforced cooperation in the Great Lakes. This translates into increased opportunities in the areas of peace and security, regional infrastructure, trade and cross-border cooperation which are mostly being pursued through multi-country initiatives."}, {"bbox": [97, 444, 261, 470], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## Refugee situation"}, {"bbox": [97, 482, 1133, 933], "category": "Text", "text": "Uganda hosts the largest refugee population in Africa with over 1,5 million refugees as February 2023. Due to the endless unrest in neighbouring countries like South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda has received a heightened influx of refugees over the past few years. The country's refugee protection policies are amongst the most progressive in the world, with an inclusive approach granting refugees with freedom of movement and the right to work, to establish businesses and access public services. While refugee and host communities in Uganda typically coexist peacefully, tensions arise, attributed to various factors including competition for natural resources, land disputes, destruction of crops by animals belonging to the host or refugee communities and/or perceived inequities in access to livelihoods, services and international aid. Such tensions have been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The situation is often particularly precarious in larger cities, where refugees do not benefit from governmental or international aid, as these benefits are provided in official refugee settlements. Supporting access to basic services for both groups is thus crucial in urban areas. Furthermore, people are affected differently by forced displacement, depending on their age, gender, and diversity. Particularly women and girls are disproportionally affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The loss of income within the household has contributed to an increased incidence of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and negative coping mechanisms such as survival sex, sale of alcohol or child marriage. Women and girls traditionally face most of the unpaid work burden, such as cooking, housework, collecting firewood and fetching water exposing them to sexual violence and other forms exploitation.²"}, {"bbox": [97, 945, 1133, 999], "category": "Text", "text": "The Action is aligned with the country's many humanitarian response and development planning documents and strategies, that address the specific challenges arising from the past and continuous influx of refugees:"}, {"bbox": [97, 1001, 1133, 1054], "category": "List-item", "text": "- the *Refugee and Host Population Empowerment (ReHoPE) strategy*, which provides a national framework for making refugees part and parcel of the development agenda,"}, {"bbox": [97, 1055, 1133, 1135], "category": "List-item", "text": "- Uganda's development agenda the *National Development Plan III (NDP III)*, that lists amongst others the necessity to integrate topics of migration and refuge planning and all other cross cutting issues in national, sectoral and local government plans,"}, {"bbox": [97, 1137, 1042, 1164], "category": "List-item", "text": "- the UN *Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF)*, for which Uganda is a pilot country,"}, {"bbox": [97, 1165, 1133, 1244], "category": "List-item", "text": "- The *Water and Environment Sector Refugee Response Plan* (WESRRP), developed under the CRRF, which specifically addresses pressure on public services, e. g. water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services, from refugee influxes."}, {"bbox": [97, 1257, 217, 1281], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## Water sector"}, {"bbox": [97, 1295, 1133, 1481], "category": "Text", "text": "Over the past five years, access to safe water in Uganda has stagnated between 65 and 69% (according to Water and Environment sector performance reports) despite continuous investments in new infrastructure. This stagnation is attributed to the increased population growth (growth rate of 3% per UBOS 2021) over the same period which does not match the volume of investment and low functionality of the existing infrastructure. Unreliable and inequitable water supply, poor operation and maintenance especially at institutional level and inadequate funding to the sector compound the problem. There are special regional challenges: As a result of decades of conflict, Northern Uganda continues to have above-average poverty rates among the population and"}, {"bbox": [85, 1565, 1142, 1644], "category": "Footnote", "text": "² UNHCR. • Inter-agency report: refugee women and girls in Uganda disproportionately affected by COVID-19. Retrieved at: https://www.unhcr.org/africa/news/news-releases/inter-agency-report-refugee-women-and-girls-uganda-disproportionately-affected"}, {"bbox": [1038, 1682, 1142, 1706], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 5 of 21"}]