The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and Ethiopian Refugees and Returnees Service (RRS) along with over 130 aid agencies issued the warning in a statement on Tuesday; saying refugees risk limited assistance due to insufficient funding.
They called humanitarian and development partners for “increased support to bolster the response and provide much-needed assistance to those in greatest need.”
Currently, Ethiopia is sheltering more than a million refugees and asylum-seekers, mostly from neighboring countries such as South Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, and Sudan.
Efforts to provide durable solutions to the refugees and host communities are being challenged by insufficient and inconsistent support.
“It is disheartening to witness the impact of underfunding on refugees because the level of needs far outweighs the resources available,” said Teyiba Hassen, Director General of Ethiopia’s Refugees and Returnees Service (RRS).
“International support is crucial to enable the government to continue to make good on our commitment t o continue hosting refugees and asylum seekers,” she added.
Children Dropping Out of School
According to the statement, the education sector stands out as one of the hardest hit by insufficient funding, with only half of school-aged refugee children currently attending school.
“When the teachers don’t come, students also miss out on school and engage in other activities,” lamented Gatchew, a 23-year-old student in Gambella.
Overcrowded classrooms and up to 80 percent of children drop out of school after their primary education compounded the challenges.
Without additional funding, salaries for most primary and secondary education teachers will go unpaid, leading to the closure of schools in 23 refugee locations.
The statement said the provision of other basic services, healthcare in particular, has also been affected by the dwindling funding.
Hinda, a Somali refugee in Mirqaan refugee settlement, said: “The hospital here does not have medicine, so we have to pay expensive transport fees to travel far away to get medication or even sell our food to be able to afford medicine for our children.”
Lack of essential medicines and medical equipment continues to hamper aid agencies’ ability to prevent and respond to disease outbreaks, resulting in twice as many preventable deaths among refugees in 2023.
MG/abj/APA