UNHCR faces funding shortfall to meet needs of refugees in Ethiopia

By:Xinhua
update:January 18,2019

Jan. 18, 2019 -- The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Thursday it has only received 50 percent of the 327.8 million U.S. dollars it needs to meet the needs of refugees in Ethiopia.

In a press statement sent to Xinhua, UNHCR said the funds are needed to meet the basic nutritional needs, as well as the education, health and accommodation needs of refugees in Ethiopia.

The UNHCR has as of Aug. 31 registered 905,831 refugees and asylum seekers in Ethiopia, most of whom are housed in refugee camps in six regional states.

Ethiopia currently hosts the second largest refugee population in Africa, next to Uganda. Refugees in Ethiopia primarily come from Eritrea, South Sudan, Somalia and Sudan, according to figures from the Ethiopian government.

Conflict and drought in neighboring countries continues to force people to seek refuge in Ethiopia, which has a long tradition of hosting refugees.