Health Care Access and Host-Refugee Relations in Uganda

As of 2013, Uganda hosted over 200,000 refugees and asylum seekers. The government of Uganda maintains strong pro-refugee policies, granting refugees fertile land to grow food and the rights to live, work and own property outside of official settlements. Surprisingly, these measures remain popular with many Ugandans, as measured in a survey carried out in two refugee-hosting areas in December 2013.

Both refugees and their Ugandan neighbors benefit from the presence of humanitarian agencies; Ugandans also access many of the services provided to refugees, including health services, which are better funded than services at typical rural Ugandan health centers. To assess the degree to which shared health services influences cross-community conflict and cooperation between Ugandans and refugees, a mixed methods study was conducted in the latter part of 2013. Focus group discussions and survey research were conducted in two areas of Uganda where refugees are hosted; research participants included both Ugandans and refugees.

The study confirmed that improved health services are a contributing factor to positive reception of refugees among Ugandans. It also found that many Ugandans feel that improved health serves mitigate or offset some disadvantages related to hosting refugees. However, the study also found that refugees’ access to health services is measurably and significantly better than Ugandan neighbors, raising important questions of equity and justice. It also identified rapidly changing and place-specific social, economic and political factors that may undermine strategies designed to improve host-refugee relations by providing health services to both communities.