Uganda
Kitgum district. A camp for the displaced. Around 1.5 million people are now said to have fled their homes because of the conflict.
"Nowhere in the world is there such a concentrated area where many people are being terrorised for such a long period of time. This is the epicentre of terror that merits more attention, more resources and more political and security involvement." Jan Egeland, Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs during a visit to a camp for internally displaced persons in Pader District. (Relief Web 03/04/06)
Current Situation
|
Human development index rank (UNDP, 2005) |
144 (of 177) |
|
Human Life Expectancy |
52 years |
|
Population living below poverty line |
35% |
|
Infant mortality |
1 in 20 |
|
Literacy |
32.3% |
|
HIV/AIDS prevalence rate (Ministry of Health, 2005) |
7.1% |
(sources; UN, Reliefweb, Wikipedia)
A 2005 poll of humanitarian professionals, media personalities, academics and activists identified the conflict in the north of Uganda as the second worst "forgotten" humanitarian emergency in the world, superseded only by the Congo.
Over twenty years have passed since the civil war, that claimed the lives of over half a million people , and Uganda is still firmly gripped by one of Africa’s most brutal rebellions.
Hundreds of thousands of people in the north of the country are being terrorised, brutalised or killed by armed groups with a reported 20,000 children in total that have been abducted and forced to become child soldiers, some as young as seven years old. Every night tens of thousands of children known as ‘night commuters’ walk up to 20 kilometres (12.45 miles) to find safety from the militia in shelters set up by aid agencies. The International Committee of the Red Cross and its local partner the Ugandan Red Cross provide counseling, emotional support, food and medical care for the children who are able to flee, while working to locate their parents and arrange family reunions.
An estimated *1.7 million people have been forced to flee their homes into camps seeking refuge and protection. Despite best efforts by aid organizations these camps are often unsanitary, cramped and still vulnerable to raids by armed groups.
*(Figures taken from the Internal Displacement monitoring centre)
