According to UNHCR's December 2024 report, Uganda hosts over 1.8 million refugees from DR Congo, South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi, and beyond, making it home to the largest refugee population in Africa. Yet, Uganda itself faces significant financial constraints.
When refugees arrive, they must share already limited resources, such as schools, hospitals, markets, water, electricity, and farmland, with host communities. This growing demand intensifies pressure on resources, sometimes leading to conflicts, particularly over land, a vital asset for Uganda's predominantly subsistence-farming population.
The situation has worsened with recent funding cuts from the World Food Program due to escalating global crises, such as those in Ukraine and the Middle East. As a result, food aid for refugees has been drastically reduced to just $3 per month per person, and some families have been completely cut off. This has left refugee households, especially those led by women and children, who make up about 60% of the refugee population, in a dire struggle for survival.
CIYOTA actively engages with refugee and host communities to identify pressing economic and social challenges and develop tailored sustainable solutions. We empower individuals and groups through financial literacy training, business management skills, and access to resources that foster self-reliance. Our initiatives provide asset financing, small grants, and mentorship, enabling refugee families to build sustainable livelihoods, secure food, and educate their children.
Through our Family Business for Education (FBE) initiative, we support refugee-led enterprises in tailoring, piggery, poultry, and crop production, transforming hardship into opportunity. By equipping families with the tools to succeed, we are providing aid, building resilience, and creating lasting change.