{"id":70109,"date":"2025-06-20T10:10:44","date_gmt":"2025-06-20T08:10:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/en\/?p=70109"},"modified":"2025-06-20T10:10:44","modified_gmt":"2025-06-20T08:10:44","slug":"refugees-in-africa-those-who-stay-those-who-heal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/refugees-in-africa-those-who-stay-those-who-heal\/","title":{"rendered":"Refugees in Africa: those who stay, those who heal"},"content":{"rendered":"

While borders and barriers become stronger and stronger across Europe, in 2024, 73% of the world\u2019s refugees found shelter in low- and middle-income countries.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Data are reported in the latest UNHCR report, published ahead of World Refugee Day to shed a light on the lives of people forced to flee.<\/p>\n

Uganda<\/strong> is currently among the top hosting countries in Africa. With 1.8 million refugees<\/strong>, it ranks fifth globally and first in Africa. In Uganda\u2019s West Nile region, most refugees come from South Sudan, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.<\/p>\n

\u201cConflicts are increasing, and people keep arriving in desperate, emergency conditions,\u201d says Joseph Katetemera, CUAMM Project Manager in West Nile<\/strong>. \u201cUganda keeps its doors open, even though funding is rapidly declining. To date, overcrowding in camps is a serious issue, and USAID cuts have led to severe underfunding. People must rely solely on their own resilience to survive.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

CUAMM has been working to support refugees in the region since 2022, with the most recent project running through March 2025. The focus has been on providing primary health services, emergency obstetric care, and psychosocial support.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over the last year alone: 2,777 women gave birth safely, over 14,500 people received care <\/strong>during 100 outreach sessions in villages, 1,042 patients accessed life-saving medications. <\/strong>Special attention was given to people with disabilities, with the construction of accessible latrines, provision of hygiene kits, and inclusive training sessions.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the key achievements, I believe, is that we were able to perform more than 2,000 surgeries on refugees, including over 600 people blinded by cataracts,\u201d says Katetemera.<\/strong> \u201cThe story that stays with me most is that of Atizuyo Gladys, a woman who had been blind for eighteen years. Because of her condition, she had lost everything\u2014even the small shop she once ran to support herself. She was ostracized by the community, who believed she had been cursed. Only her family and husband stayed with her. I\u2019ll never forget the day she regained her sight after the surgery: it was the day she saw her children\u2019s faces for the very first time. She even reopened her small business, thanks to a fundraising effort organized in her support.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Stories like that of Atizuyo give hope in a country where the situation remains critical and the strain is starting to show. And the pressure isn\u2019t limited to Uganda\u2014 it also threatens countries like Ethiopia. In Gambella region<\/strong>, near the border with South Sudan, the crisis is deepening. The region currently hosts five refugee camps with over 375,000 South Sudanese, with an additional 50,000 arrivals due to the escalating conflict.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe situation is truly dire: we\u2019re trying to expand the camps because there\u2019s simply no more space,\u201d explains Daniel Frehun, CUAMM Area Manager in Gambella.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The camps are located in remote areas, often far from water sources and services. Yet CUAMM remains committed. Active in Gambella since 2018, CUAMM currently provides full healthcare services at two health posts in the Ngunyyiel camp <\/strong>and collaborates with community structures in three additional camps.<\/p>\n

Activities include: health promotion, preventive care (vaccinations, nutritional screening), treatment, with special attention to women and children. A key initiative is the \u201ctea talks\u201d\u2014informal gatherings led by community health workers, many of whom are refugees themselves, to raise awareness among women of reproductive age.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are moments when concerns surface, challenges are shared, and trust is built,\u201d says Daniel.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In a context plagued by recurrent health emergencies\u2014from cholera to the recent Mpox outbreak\u2014the presence of trained personnel and consistent commitment becomes vital.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany partners are leaving, but we are staying. Even with fewer resources, we continue working side by side with the community.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

He closes with a message that goes beyond statistics:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat has struck me most in these four years alongside refugees is their resilience and sense of humanity. I\u2019ve witnessed profound suffering, caused by poverty and repeated health emergencies. Yet they\u2019ve never stopped showing strength, gratitude, and hope. One mother in the Ngunyyiel camp even named her son after \u2018CUAMM\u2019, in gratitude for the care she received during her pregnancy.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cRefugees are not just victims. They are mothers, fathers, and children who once lived in peace and still dream. Today, they continue to support their communities with dignity. We see them, we listen to them, and we walk alongside them.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On the occasion of World Refugees Day, we shed a light on the lives of those forced to flee and renew our commitment in ensuring millions across Uganda and Ethiopia the right to accessing care.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":70110,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2493,1172],"tags":[1252,2529,2918,2919,997],"argomenti":[],"protagonisti":[],"luoghi":[2501,2526,2606,2498],"class_list":["post-70109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homenews","category-news","tag-gambella","tag-ethiopia","tag-west-nile","tag-world-refugees-day","tag-uganda","luoghi-west-nile","luoghi-ethiopia","luoghi-gambella","luoghi-uganda"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70109"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70109\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70109"},{"taxonomy":"argomenti","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/argomenti?post=70109"},{"taxonomy":"protagonisti","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/protagonisti?post=70109"},{"taxonomy":"luoghi","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/doctorswithafrica.org\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/luoghi?post=70109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}