KAMPALA, Uganda — Uganda’s refugee population is expected to surpass 2 million as the country prepares to host an additional 27,000 asylum seekers in the 2026/2027 fiscal year.
The estimate was disclosed by Apollo Kivumbi, assistant commissioner in the Office of the Prime Minister, who presented the ministry’s policy statement before the Committee on Presidential Affairs on Thursday.
Kivumbi said the new arrivals will be settled under the second phase of the Development Response to Displacement Impacts Project, a $328 million initiative funded largely by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. He said the funds will support host districts through socio-economic services, infrastructure development and economic opportunities.
“The project has been declared effective and implementation has started,” he said.
But lawmakers raised concerns about resource allocation and the strain of hosting one of the world’s largest refugee populations. Uganda remains a primary haven for those fleeing instability in neighboring countries, including Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
Independent lawmaker James Mamawi, who represents Adjumani East County, said funds should instead be directed at improving conditions for existing refugees. He questioned the government’s capacity to absorb more people, noting that refugees receive 10,000 shillings monthly for food.
“The allocation of resources to refugee hosting districts is questionable,” Mamawi said. “Adjumani hosts the majority of these refugees, and yet we get the least funds. What criteria is used to allocate these funds?”
In separate testimony, Moroto Municipality lawmaker Francis Adome warned that eliminating the school feeding program from next year’s budget could trigger a sharp rise in dropouts in the Karamoja subregion. He said continued budget cuts risk unraveling recent peace gains.
“Karamoja is currently witnessing peace following the disarmament of cattle rustlers, but some of the programs have not yet been rolled out due to budget cuts,” Adome said, noting that funding for the region had dropped to 2.7 billion shillings from 32 billion shillings.
Committee Chairperson Alex Byarugaba urged the Office of the Prime Minister to prioritize funding for affirmative action regions, including Karamoja, Teso, Bunyoro and Luwero.
“We applaud your efforts as a ministry, but the affirmative action districts are still underfunded,” Byarugaba said.
The Office of the Prime Minister’s proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year stands at 216 billion shillings.
