Humanitarian aid to Congolese refugees at the Busanza border town in Kisoro district are being constrained by the conflicting reports of the number of people displaced by the fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Several aid agencies, including the Uganda Red Cross Society, say it is increasingly difficult to coordinate the distribution of relief because the exact number of Congolese refugees is unknown.
The United Nations High Commission for Refugees estimates that about 10,000 people have crossed into Uganda since fighting between rebel leader Laurent Nkunda and the Congolese forces begun in August. The number of refugees who have crossed in recent weeks ranges between 4,000 and 6,000 people.
Uganda Red Cross is registering and verifying the refugees on behalf of UNHCR.
Andrew Omale, the Program Officer for Disaster Response at Uganda Red Cross, says the exact number of the refugees is not known because of double registration by some people. The refugees are also moving from one village to another in Uganda, making it difficult for aid agencies to track their movement.
In Mupaka trading centre in Busanza Sub-County a number of Congolese families have settled within the local community. The refugees share the same languages and customs of the people of Kisoro and have family and friends in Uganda.
Andrew Omale says aid agencies are unable to provide humanitarian aid to refugees living in camps less than less the 25 kilometers from the Congo border because of restrictions in regards to Uganda's territorial laws. He explains that this has made aid distribution to some of the most vulnerable people difficult.
Territory controlled by Laurent Nkunda is just five kilometers from Busanza on the Congo side of the border.
On Thursday several aid agencies will meet in Kisoro to discuss improved intervention methods. They will meet in Busanza to assess the situation on the ground.
