Drastic increase in refugees and risks to identity rights

UNHCR is assisting some 10,000 refugees in Uganda after they fled violent clashes which began on 28 March 2022. UNHCR reports that thousands of children, women, and men have arrived from DRC and nearly 36,000 people have been displaced within the DRC. In addition, the humanitarian needs of over 5.6 million internally displaced people in the DRC remain largely unmet due to lack of funding. According to the latest figures available to UNHCR, the number of Nicaraguan refugees and asylum seekers in Costa Rica has doubled in the last eight months, reaching more than 150,000, representing a full 3% of Costa Rica’s total population of five million. UNHCR reports that “more Nicaraguans are currently seeking protection in Costa Rica than all the refugees and asylum seekers combined during Central America’s civil wars in the 1980s, when Costa Rica was a sanctuary for those fleeing violence”. As mentioned by UNHCR, these figures highlight the importance of remembering other less visible situations of displacement that persist and grow around the world. Child identity Protection is concerned by the vulnerability of the displaced people, especially children, whose identity rights are particularly at risk.

Sources: https://www.unhcr.org/news/briefing/2022/3/623d894c4/number-displaced-nicaraguans-costa-rica-doubles-year.html and https://www.unhcr.org/news/briefing/2022/4/6246a9704/thousands-flee-uganda-following-clashes-dr-congo.html