OCHA Situation Report
Burundi
23 - 29 April 2007


Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

ACTIVITIES AND UPDATES

Food security: Within the framework of technical monitoring, 
FAO/Emergency Rehabilitation and Coordination Unit (ERCU) held a 4-day 
training session (23rd -27th of April) on best practices for technicians 
involved in the elaboration of the monthly bulletin for the joint 
(Government, UN and NGO) agricultural early warning system (SAP-SSA). 
Discussions focused on tools used for data collection, training on 
agricultural produce in the rural milieu, elaboration and publication of 
the SAP-SSA bulletin at the provincial level.

Repatriation: During the reporting period, 143 Burundian refugees 
including 21 spontaneous returnees arrived from Tanzania. UNHCR recorded 
a total number of 366 Burundians who returned home over the month of 
April. It is expected that the number of returnees will pick up again 
towards July when crops are harvested and the school year is over. From 
January 2007 till date, UNHCR has registered a total of 3,055 returnees. 
Since the beginning of the facilitated repatriation operation in 2002, a 
total of 341,911 Burundians have returned to their home country.

On April 27th, the Minister of National Solidarity inaugurated 200 
houses for returnees who had no land property. These houses were built 
on the Gateri site, in the commune of Buganda (Cibitoke province) by the 
government project for the reintegration and reinsertion of war-affected 
persons (PARESI) with financial support from UNHCR.

Update on food aid: Over the reporting week, WFP assisted 490,943 
beneficiaries with 2,957 MT of food aid through its various programmes; 
including feeding centres, food for work/food for training, assistance 
to refugees and HIV/AIDS affected persons, targeted distribution and 
seed protection rations. As earlier planned for the months of March 
until June this year, WFP has increased its assistance in order to meet 
the food needs of populations affected by torrential rains which 
destroyed food crops nationwide in the beginning of this year.

Repatriation of Congolese refugees: On Monday April 23rd, the ICLA 
(Information, Counseling, Legal Assistance) and Camp Management 
programmes of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) started a survey on 
Congolese refugee camps in Gasorwe (Muyinga province) and Gihinga (Mwaro 
province), in collaboration with UNHCR and HealthNet-Tanscultural 
Psychosocial Organization (HN-TPO). The survey will enquire into the 
type and level of information Congolese refugees have with regards to; 
land and property, housing and social services in their respective 
regions of origin in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The results 
of this anonymous survey will be shared with UNHCR and other 
humanitarian partners in Congo.

The purpose of this survey is to eventually provide feedback and to keep 
Congolese refugees posted on the exact situation regarding social issues 
in their various regions of origin. This update will thus provide the 
refugees with relevant information to enable them make well-informed 
decisions on whether or not to opt for voluntary repatriation. Data 
collection will take two weeks, covering every refugee household. About 
a month later, the full results and database will be handed over to NRC 
and humanitarian partners in the DRC. Feedback to the refugees will be 
given in due course.

Update on Burundians expelled from Tanzania:  During the reporting week, 
the government project for the reintegration of war-affected persons 
(PARESI) registered a total of 220 persons (110 families) expelled from 
Tanzania: 150 and 70 at the entry points of Kobero (Muyinga) and Mishiha 
(Cankuzo) respectively. Since January 2007, PARESI has recorded 2,062 
expelled persons (1,138 families.

Security: In spite of reported cases of armed banditry and teachings by 
the Palipehutu-FNL rebel movement led by Agathon Rwasa, humanitarian 
actors still have access to all communes in the western provinces of 
Bujumbura Rural, Bubanza and Cibitoke.

However, about 20 families in the Ngara area of Bubanza commune were 
temporary displaced to the Bubanza town centre further to population 
harassment by FNL combatants loyal to Jean-Bosco Sindayigaya as they 
moved from the province of Bubanza to the commune of Bukinanyana in 
Cibitoke province.

Coordination: Over the reporting week, the Ministry of Health supported 
by UNICEF and WHO, organized a workshop to validate a contingency plan 
in case of a cholera epidemic.

Contact Group: The monthly meeting was held on April 25th and was 
chaired by OCHA. The Director General of Urbanism briefed participants 
on the Study on National policy on habitat and urbanisation. This study 
which was conducted by a technical committee made up of civil society 
organisations/private sector, United Nations agencies and donors was set 
up by the Ministry of Public Works.

For more information:
  E-mail: ocha-burundi@un.org
  Tel: 205000 Ext. 5542

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