OCHA Situation Report
Burundi
16 - 22 Jul 2007


Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

ACTIVITIES AND UPDATES

Update on repatriation

UNHCR reported the return of 762 Burundian refugees who arrived from
Tanzania through the entry points of Kobero/Muyinga province (231),
Gisuru/Ruyigi province (167) and Mabanda/Makamba province (364). This
high number of returnees is in conformity with the trend over the years
which reveal that more Burundians return home between May and August; at
the end of the school year and harvest season. Since January 2007, UNHCR
has registered 5,852 returnees from Tanzania. From the beginning of the
repatriation process in April 2002, 344,851 Burundians have returned
from exile.

The transfer of Congolese refugees from Bujumbura to the Musasa/Ngozi
province transit centre continued over the reporting week. UNHCR
transferred 409 DRC refugees. From January to date, 4,693 DRC refugees
have been transferred to the Gasorwe refugee camp and Musasa transit
center.

Assistance to Burundians expelled from Tanzania

UNICEF has delivered non food items to its implementing partner
Solidarites who will distribute them to expelled persons being sheltered
in the Munzenze/Cankuzo province temporary site. This assistance
consists of clothes, plastic sheeting, jerycans, blankets, mats and high
protein biscuits (BP-5). UNICEF also delivered 120 plastic sheeting to
the Burundian Red Cross society for the construction of a transit center
in Musenyi/Mabanda commune/Makamba province where expelled Burundians
arriving from Tanzania through the southern entry point will be
sheltered before transfer.

With regards to protection issues, since the expulsion of Burundians
living without an immigration status in neighbouring countries (mainly
Tanzania) started, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has been
providing assistance to expelled persons through its Information,
Counselling and Legal Assistance (ICLA) programme. NRC works in
collaboration with other organizations involved in the human rights and
protection sector. In its capacity as focal point for the protection of
expelled persons, NRC has set up a counselling service in the transit
centre of Kinazi/Muyinga province. With the support of UNICEF, NRC has
appointed two staff members to ensure that expelled persons in the
transit site are provided with due assistance in counseling/information.
Between 16 and 20 July, 34 persons were received in the counselling
centre. This activity aims to monitor the living conditions of these
persons and to examine conditions of expulsion. So far, concerns raised
are mostly related to reintegration, property recovery and right/access
to land.  NRC also acts as an observer of the registration process from
the entry point of Kobero through Rugari to the Kinazi transit site.

Over the reporting week, the government project for the reintegration of
war-affected persons (PARESI) registered 378 persons (176 families) who
arrived from Tanzania. 143 entered through Kobero/Muyinga province and
235 through Mishiha/Cankuzo province. Since January 2007, PARESI has
recorded 4,711 expelled persons (2,465 families).

Sexual gender-based violence (SGBV)

Supported by CARE International, the national NGO SWAA-Burundi in
collaboration with referral health centers and diocesan counseling
centers in Muyinga province continue to provide assistance to victims of
sexual gender-based violence

Education

>From 16 to 20 July, UNICEF distributed 1,050 benches, 42 chairs and 42
tables to 15 and 12 primary schools in the provinces of Kayanza and
Ngozi respectively.

CARE International organized a two day (19-20 July) seminar for
representatives of the Ministry of Education, national and international
NGOs involved in the education sector, in order to discuss a support
strategy to the "Education for all" programme. CARE's education
programme aims at motivating and encouraging an active participation of
the community in managing the educational system at all levels. It
provides holistic support to vulnerable children by helping them gain
access to quality education. This education programme which is being
implemented in collaboration with other actors will reinforce capacities
to work together and therefore ensure access to education for the most
marginalized social groups such as girls, and improve on the quality of
curricula and teaching methods. This will ensure an efficient and
transparent management of the education system.

Support to health facilities

Under its programme aimed at supporting vulnerable persons through
national health services, World Vision Burundi donated medical equipment
to the hospital of Muyinga on 17 July. This material will be distributed
to 23 out of 33 health centers. The provincial doctor welcomed this
assistance and indicated that it will improve on working conditions for
medical staff and will allow better health care provision for patients
in general and for pregnant women in particular.

Mental health

HealthNet-Transcultural Psychosocial Organization (HN-TPO) held an
international conference from 16 to 18 July on the psycho-social and
mental health work being carried out through HN-TPO progammes in Africa.
Participants were HN-TPO representatives from Burundi, Sudan, DR Congo,
Uganda and Holland. The meeting highlighted the importance of
organizational learning whereby, best practices from implemented
projects can be replicated in other countries. The following projects
are in the pipeline:

- In DR Congo (North Kivu and Kasai) a health plan will be elaborated on
how to integrate mental health into the general health care system. The
Congolese Ministry of Health and the HN-TPO project in Gitega province
(Burundi) will contribute to the plan.

- HN-TPO Burundi will organize technical support missions to assist the
psychosocial project in Yei, Southern Sudan through training activities.

- There is need to improve on monitoring systems for psychosocial
projects. The Public Health and Research Department of HN-TPO Amsterdam
will cooperate closely with the Burundian team so as to develop pilot
activities.

Update on food aid distribution

Over the reporting week, WFP carried out food aid distribution
nationwide to beneficiaries of the different programmes. See table below

|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|         Activities         |Beneficiaries|Tonnages|
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|Health Nutrition            |   21,458    |  213   |
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|HIV/VU Nutrition            |    5,797    |   72   |
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|FFW/FFT                     |   18,546    |  235   |
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|Refugees Feeding            |    9,694    |  148   |
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|Return Package              |    1,147    |   70   |
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|Disarmament, Demobilization |     16      |  0.30  |
|and Reintegration           |             |        |
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|
|Total                       |   56,658    |  738   |
|----------------------------+-------------+--------|


|-------------+-------------+---------|
|  Province   |Beneficiaries|Tonnages |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Bubanza      |    2,423    |   20    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Bujumbura    |    4,874    |   64    |
|Mairie       |             |         |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Bujumbura    |    4,896    |   42    |
|Rural        |             |         |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Cankuzo      |     106     |    7    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Cibitoke     |      0      |    0    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Gitega       |     474     |    6    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Karuzi       |    7,311    |   122   |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Kayanza      |     187     |    3    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Kirundo      |    1,177    |   20    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Makamba      |    6,895    |   47    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Muramvya     |    1,511    |   13    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Muyinga      |   21,462    |   327   |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Mwaro        |      0      |    0    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Ngozi        |     414     |    2    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Rutana       |    3,034    |   38    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Ruyigi       |    1,894    |   27    |
|-------------+-------------+---------|
|Total        |   56,658    |   738   |
|-------------+-------------+---------|


Latest developments

Based on results of the 2007B crop harvest evaluation and food aid
distributed in June, partners involved in the food sector met on 25 July
to make preparations for the 2008A agricultural season. An estimated
21,500 households which represent 12% of the total Burundian population
will receive seeds for the said season. Lead agencies for the
organization of seed fairs are: FAO, WFP, CRS and GTZ.

For more information: E-mail: ocha-burundi@un.org, Tel: +257 22 205000
Ext. 5542

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Appropriate Donations for International Disaster/Humanitarian Needs
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Center for International              web: www.cidi.org
    Disaster Information          listserv: www.cidi.org/listsub.htm
                                guidelines: www.cidi.org/donate.htm
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -