Daniel, like many 14 year-old children, has an active interest in science. As a star pupil at his elementary school, his future should have been bright. Last November 2016, however, everything changed and he now wonders whether his dreams will ever be achievable. That was when armed militia killed Daniel’s father and abducted his mother. He fled South Sudan and sought refuge in Uganda, with nothing but the clothes on his back and the science textbook he was able to save.
Daniel has joined the ranks of at least 700 million children – one in four around the world – who has been robbed of their childhood, as documented in Save the Children’s new comprehensive index, Stolen Childhoods. For these children, childhood has ended too soon. They should not have to worry about their safety, whether they will receive an education or basic services such as health care. Children, like Daniel, who have fled their country and constitute over half of the world’s refugee population, face a very uncertain future. Nearly 84 percent of the worlds’ refugees under UNHCR’s mandate are hosted in developing countries whose own populations face their own challenges.
The world must do better to restore childhood for children like Daniel. That means greater responsibility sharing so that countries like Uganda, Jordan, Lebanon, or others with large refugee flows from conflict-affected neighbors are not left to fend on their own. While countries like the U.S. have provided significant support for refugees around the world, much more is required to enable countries like Uganda to meet the needs of their own people as well to ensure dignity for refugees.
The upcoming Uganda Solidarity Summit on Refugees, starting on June 22, is an opportunity for the U.S. and other countries to show leadership in addressing the needs of the refugee population and to demonstrate that the world is serious about putting the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework, which was agreed upon last year, into action.
Because most refugees are being hosted in developing countries, and most of them will be refugees for well over ten years, the world needs to adopt a different way of managing protracted crises. This means better integration for humanitarian and development disciplines. Uganda is a test case of this new approach.
Uganda is “at breaking point,” as Filippo Grandi, the UN’s High Commissioner for Refugees, describes the situation. It is among the world’s top refugee hosting countries with over 1.2 million refugees, up from half a million in 2016. Over 2,000 people are entering the country every day. Despite this massive influx, the government says that it remains committed to keeping its borders open to those fleeing persecution and it is implementing progressive policies toward refugees.
At last year’s UN General Assembly, world Leaders adopted the NY Declaration on Refugees and Migrants and agreed upon the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF). Uganda is one of a handful of countries piloting this new approach meant to ease pressures on host countries, enhance self-reliance of refugees, expand third country solutions and support conditions of return. With the host government in the lead, this framework takes a holistic approach to providing refugees with both rapid and long-term services, as well as working to identify long-term solutions.
At the same time, the UN-led refugee response plan for South Sudanese refugees in the region has received only 17 percent of the funding it requested. The lack of funding has meant rationing of food and limitations in the provision of essential services to the point that international humanitarian standards are not being met in all locations. Refugees who have already suffered so much and the host communities who generously welcomed them both deserve better. Without greater funding commitments, Uganda will not be able to deliver on the promise of the CRRF.
Programs such as education that go beyond the bare minimum for survival are critical. It’s not just Daniel who sees education as the key to his future. My colleagues and I have met with refugee children and their parents all over the world who highlight their ardent desire to continue education. It helps children rebuild their lives, feel protected, and keep hope for the future.
Uganda is home to half a million school aged refugees, many of whom join the ranks of 3.5 million child refugees worldwide who do not attend school. Even those who are enrolled face challenges too: overcrowding, language barriers and a lack of psychological support.
The upcoming summit will mobilize efforts and resources to support the refugee population in Uganda. The President of Uganda, H.E. Museveni, hopes that the government can raise 2 billion dollars to continue its programs and will look to raise resources for the next four years – ensuring that long term needs like education can be reliably funded. We look forward to world support for a plan that would enable all South Sudanese refugees and Ugandan children in host communities to have access to quality pre-primary, primary and secondary education.
There are many hosting countries that face similar challenges. UN agencies, donor governments, NGOs, foundations, and the private sector will need to work with host governments and communities to ensure countries like Uganda can enable refugees, as well as their own populations, to live in dignity and peace. With long-term planning, coordination, and adequate financing, results are achievable. If the CRRF in Uganda is fully supported by both humanitarian and development actors, it can become a model for the future. However, if the world does not rally behind Uganda in promoting this new approach to sharing responsibility, we all risk more stolen childhoods.