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Appeal
Tanzania
Response to Burundian Refugee influx in Tanzania – TZA151
Appeal Target: US$ 1,871,208
Balance Requested: US$ 1,783,208
Geneva, June 19, 2015
Since April 2015, Burundians have been fleeing their country following the announcement that President Pierre Nkurunziza, in violation of the country’s constitution, is seeking a 3rd presidential term. Mass protests have followed, during which at least 30 civilians have perished . There was a subsequent failed coup which has led to a deterioration in safety and security in Burundi, including displacement towards surrounding countries at a high rate. The largest influx of refugees are arriving in Tanzania. UNHCR reports that more than 50’000 Burundian refugees are present in western Tanzania, and nearly all of them are currently in Nyarugusu Refugee Camp , with more arriving. Nyarugusu is an old refugee camp for Congolese refugees with a capacity of 50’000 people, and with the arrival of the new Burundian refugees, the camp is congested, the living conditions have become extremely dire and tensions arise. Tanzania government policy does not permit a refugee camp to have a population of over 50’000. Therefore, the government and UNHCR are currently selecting a nearby location where a new refugee camp can be built for the newly-arrived Burundian refugees.
ACT member Church World Service, in partnership with Tanganyika Christian Refugee Service (TCRS) plans on providing humanitarian life-saving assistance in the forms of water supply, sanitation, hygiene, protection, shelter, non-food items and psychosocial support to Burundian refugees in Nyarugusu and other refugee camps in Western Tanzania.
There also was a cholera outbreak at Kagunga, a transit station for Burundian refugees that had become overcrowded and lacked adequate sanitation facilities. A massive and immediate collaborative humanitarian response with a focus on health and WASH was successfully able to contain the spread of cholera and prevent a major epidemic, including the response of ACT member the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), in partnership with TCRS, via a Revolving Fund which is to be reimbursed through this Appeal.
For the full appeal document, please click here.
