Oxfam Canada

Purpose

February 2019 - Tanzania was host to over 327,000 refugees and asylum-seekers by November 30, 2018, mainly from Burundi (74.1%) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (25.7%). The majority of refugees and asylum-seekers are hosted by the Government of Tanzania in three refugee camps in northwestern Tanzania – Nyarugusu, Nduta, and Mtendeli. Since 2017, restrictions on access to territory and asylum have increased. All 19 border entry and reception points for Congolese as well as Burundian asylum seekers were closed between March 2017 and July 2018. In addition, despite widely-shared safety concerns about the situation in Burundi, the voluntary repatriation operation began in September 2017. As of November 30, 2018, 56,049 people had returned to Burundi as part of the operation.