Burundi

2012 UNHCR country operations profile - Burundi

Working environment

The context

Despite expectations of improvements, the political situation in Burundi has remained tense, and the population has continued to suffer from armed attacks. Human rights organizations and the media have reported arbitrary arrests, torture and extra-judicial killings. The tense security environment does not help an economy ravaged by high inflation and frequent scarcities of imported commodities.

The scale of organized repatriation of Burundian refugees from neighbouring countries has not matched expectations for 2010-2011. The number of Congolese refugees hosted in Burundi has remained stable, with new arrivals balancing departures for voluntary repatriation, following the 2009 Tripartite Agreement between Burundi, UNHCR and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Burundi is a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, as well as the 1969 OAU Convention governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa. The Government of Burundi has also indicated its readiness to sign the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness before the end of 2011. This will help UNHCR to tackle the issue of some 1,500 people of Omani origin who are at risk of statelessness.

There are some 150,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in settlements in Burundi. UNHCR has been supporting the Government in starting a profiling exercise in 2011 that should lead to the establishment of an action plan towards durable solutions in 2012.

The needs

An estimated 30,300 refugees and 8,000 asylum-seekers in Burundi will be in need of assistance in 2012. Assistance will also be required by some 20,000 Burundian refugees expected to return home, mainly from the United Republic of Tanzania and from the DRC. The planned closure at the end of 2011 of Mtabila Camp in Tanzania, host to some 37,000 Burundian refugees, might also result in the return of most of the camp residents, and have a significant impact on the scale of reintegration activities planned for 2012-2013.

Reintegration activities are therefore being planned for some 38,500 Burundian returnees in 2012. The most vulnerable returnees are those who have no access to land. Needs arising from land disputes will be addressed in close collaboration with local implementing partners and the Commission Nationale des Terres et autres Biens (CNTB), the Government's land commission. Most displaced persons face problems similar to those of all Burundians: food insecurity, lack of access to basic services, crime and banditry.

Main objectives and targets for 2012

Fair protection processes and documentation

The quality of registration and profiling is improved or maintained.

• Some 7,000 applications for refugee status determination are processed through support to the national framework on refugees and asylum-seekers.
• Access to documentation is guaranteed for returnees 16 years and above and refugees 14 years and above.

Security from violence and exploitation

The risk of sexual and gender-based violence is reduced and the quality of the response to it is improved.

• Some 30,300 refugees (including 20,000 camp refugees) are protected and provided with access to programmes on the prevention of, and response to, sexual violence.

Basic needs and essential services

Shelter and infrastructure are established, improved and maintained.

• All households live in adequate dwellings.
• Around 3,500 shelters are constructed for some 17,500 beneficiaries.
• Reintegration is facilitated (including through access to land) for some 38,500 beneficiaries.

The health status of the population is improved.

• The under-five mortality rate does not exceed six per 1,000 people per month.
• Around 30,300 refugees and 20,000 returnees are provided with basic health care (including assistance for people living with HIV and AIDS).

The population has optimal access to education.

• Some 6,700 and 2,900 refugee children are provided access to primary and secondary education, respectively.

The supply of potable water is increased or maintained.

• Better access to water is provided to around 20,000 refugees in the camps and the target of 20 litres per person per day for Musasa and Garsorwe camps is reached.

Durable solutions

The potential for voluntary return is realized.

• Some 20,000 Burundian refugees from the DRC, Tanzania and Uganda repatriate voluntarily.
• Some 3,000 Congolese refugees in Burundi repatriate voluntarily to the DRC.

The potential for resettlement is realized.

• Some 350 refugees are resettled in third countries in 2012 and another 400 in 2013.

Strategy and activities in 2012

UNHCR will protect and assist some 30,300 refugees and 8,800 asylum-seekers in camps and in urban areas. It will respond to basic needs, take measures to prevent sexual and gender-based violence, reinforce the self-sufficiency of refugees and help the Government to improve registration procedures. UNHCR will also implement its policy on urban refugees. Programmes promoting sustainable repatriation, reintegration and resettlement will also receive priority. If necessary, a fourth camp will be established in 2012 to ensure the proper care of some 3,000 newly arrived refugees.

Although the departure rate of Congolese refugees staying in camps and in urban areas in Burundi has remained low since the beginning of the repatriation operation in October 2010, UNHCR plans to support the voluntary return of some 3,000 of them in 2012. The political situation in the DRC and the prevailing security situation will play a decisive role in decisions to return. UNHCR will aim to facilitate the resettlement of some 350 refugees in 2012 and a further 400 in 2013, on medical and protection grounds.

In 2012, UNHCR is planning to assist the voluntary repatriation of some 20,000 Burundians from other countries in the region, mainly Tanzania (15,000) and the DRC (5,000). Transport and standard assistance, such as cash grants, food, non-food items (NFIs), health care and school kits will be provided upon return.

UNHCR will also support the reintegration of about 38,500 returnees, including those repatriated in 2010 and 2011, who may not yet have been assisted. Legal aid will be given to returnees facing land and property disputes. Access to land remains the most sensitive issue with regard to the reintegration of returnees, and UNHCR will continue to advocate for and support the peaceful resolution of land conflicts. Donors, other UN agencies and NGOs will be encouraged to include these returnees in their development plans, allowing UNHCR to implement an exit strategy in 2012. In view of the difficulty in securing land for returnees, UNHCR is proposing to distribute construction kits provided the Government identifies and allocates land to the returnees. The integrated approach adopted in the past in the construction of integrated rural villages (also known as peace villages) is becoming more and more challenging due to the limited resources.

Some 1,500 people who arrived in Burundi from Oman in the 1970s have been found to be at risk of statelessness. In 2012, UNHCR will continue to work with the Government on establishing a strong legal framework to facilitate a profiling exercise, in order to define durable solutions for these people.

On the basis of the profiling exercise of the IDP population conducted in 2011, UNHCR will support the Burundian Government as it implements a plan to find durable solutions for some 150,000 people estimated to be internally displaced. UNHCR will also work with the Government on a national strategy for the socio-economic reintegration of people harmed by conflicts.

Constraints

The difficult economic and socio-political situation prevailing in the country, along with the precarious security environment, also impedes strengthened protection monitoring.

Burundi is in a post-conflict situation, characterized by a progressive withdrawal of NGOs and humanitarian actors. The Norwegian Refugee Council, UNHCR's main implementing partner for camp management, will withdraw from Burundi at the end of 2011. Finding alternative arrangements will be a further challenge for UNHCR.

Organization and implementation

Coordination

UNHCR and other UN Agencies in Burundi work within a unified framework for the planning of activities and the security and safety of staff. UNHCR will continue assuming the lead of the Protection Sector Cluster, jointly with the Human Rights Office of the UN Office in Burundi (BNUB). UNHCR also works in close coordination with the Government and national coordination bodies concerned with return, reintegration and IDP activities.

Financial information

UNHCR's budget for 2012 in Burundi totals USD 30.8 million, representing a reduction of about 30 per cent per cent from the 2011 budget of USD 44.5 million. The decrease primarily reflects the reduction in the number of returnees assisted. However, the budget includes some requirements that could result from the closure of the Mtabila Camp in Tanzania hosting more than 37,000 Burundian refugees, as well as new voluntary repatriation from and to the DRC and other countries, and also reintegration activities for returnees.

Source: UNHCR Global Appeal 2012-2013