CARE Canada

Purpose

March 2020 - Uganda hosts the largest number of refugees in Africa, and the third largest in the world, close to 1.4 million people, primarily from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Most of the refugees are women and children, almost wholly reliant on international assistance to meet their basic needs. Although gaps exist across all sectors of the humanitarian response, protection is particularly critical to address needs arising from sexual and gender-based violence experienced while fleeing conflict and often continuing in the refugee settlements. With GAC support, CARE is providing access to critical healthcare and protection services to an estimated 25,000 South Sudanese and Congolese refugees living in Uganda’s Arua district. The project is focusing on (1) increasing sexual and reproductive health services through support to existing health systems and (2) strengthening local mechanisms to respond to and prevent sexual and gender-based violence.