Kiziba refugee camp

Kiziba refugee camp
Refugee camp
Interactive map of Kiziba refugee camp
CountryRwanda
ProvinceWestern Province
DistrictKarongi District
SectorRwankuba Sector
EstablishedDecember 1996
Area
 • Total
44 ha (110 acres)
Population
 • Estimate 
14,000

Kiziba refugee camp is the oldest refugee camp in Rwanda. It was established in 1996 and is located in the Rwankuba Sector of Karongi District in the Western Province of Rwanda. The more than 14,000 refugees living there are predominantly Tutsi who originate from North Kivu Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many of the children and young adults in the refugee camp, however, were born there and have grown up in the camp. The Ministry in Charge of Emergency Management (MINEMA) administers the camp in cooperation with the UNHCR.

Five children sit on top of a hill. Below, them, a number of long one-story buildings spread out.
Children on a hill in the Kiziba refugee camp (2014)
Kiziba refugee camp is located in Rwanda
Kigeme
Kiziba
Kiziba
Mahama
Mugombwa
Nyabiheke
Nyabiheke
Location of Kiziba refugee camp and other refugee camps in Rwanda

Layout and administration

The camp originally covered an area of 28 hectares; it has since grown to around 44 hectares and is divided into ten quarters. It is administered by the Ministry in Charge of Emergency Management (MINEMA) in cooperation with the UNHCR. MINEMA is represented by a camp manager and a deputy camp manager. Staff of Rwanda’s Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration (DGIE) and the Rwanda National Police are also present in the refugee camp. Food is provided by the World Food Programme.[1]

In addition to UNHCR, the following organizations were involved in the refugee camp as of 2022:[1]

  • African Humanitarian Agency (AHA)
  • Inkomoko
  • Kepler
  • Prison Fellowship Rwanda (PFR)

Due to its location in hilly terrain, Kiziba refugee camp is vulnerable to soil erosion, surface runoff and the formation of erosion gullies. To improve the situation, UNHCR, refugees and members of the local population plant trees as part of Umuganda community work.[2]

History

Development of refugee numbers

Line chart showing the number of refugees in Rwanda between 1965 and 2024. A small peak of just over 50,000 refugees is visible for the years 1982 to 1984. The largest peak follows with a jump from around 25,000 refugees in 1992 to more than 250,000 refugees in 1993 and then back to an estimated under 10,000 in 1994. After that, the number of refugees rises relatively steadily again to just over 50,000 in 2012. The increase then accelerates to a maximum of around 170,000 refugees in 2017 and falls by 2024 to a value between 110,000 and 120,000.
Number of refugees in Rwanda (1965–2024) according to Our World in Data, based on UNHCR data

The camp was established in December 1996 to accommodate tens of thousands of refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, both there and in Gihembe refugee camp. Most of the displaced people were Tutsi who fled violence in Masisi in North Kivu between 1995 and 1996.[3] After some returned to the DR Congo, Kiziba refugee camp still serves today as shelter for more than 14,000 refugees.[4][5] A large share of its inhabitants are now children and young adults who were born in the refugee camp, which has developed into a small town, and grew up there.[6]

Development in figures
Date Number of refugees,

asylum seekers and others

 Source
April 2021 17,264 [7]
November 2022 16,277 [1]
February 2023 15,955 [8]
September 2023 16,076 [9]
December 2023 15,486 [2]
March 2024 14,911 [10]

Financial difficulties

Because of a lack of funding, UNHCR and the World Food Programme reduced food assistance by 10 percent in November 2017 and by a further 25 percent in January 2018.[11] In 2018, the Rwandan government also banned the use of firewood. Since then, UNHCR has provided monthly financial support to refugees to enable them to buy fuel for cooking.[2] In 2023, financial assistance from UNHCR and the World Food Programme was reduced because of funding gaps. Monthly assistance for refugees in the first category fell from 8,600 RWF to 5,600 RWF; for refugees in the second category it fell from 5,600 RWF to 2,800 RWF, while support for refugees in the third category was discontinued entirely. In cooperation with organizations such as Practical Action and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), contact has been made with suppliers of equipment such as sewing machines, refrigerators and solar-powered lamps in order to provide their products at subsidized prices and enable refugees to pursue income-generating activities.[5]

Protests and police violence

On 22 February 2018, police violently dispersed a sit-in that had been taking place for three days in front of the UNHCR office in Karongi District. Hundreds to thousands of refugees had marched there on 20 February from Kiziba refugee camp, 15 kilometres away. The refugees were protesting against reduced food assistance. In attempting to break up the protest, police initially used tear gas. A few minutes later, police opened fire. According to UNHCR, eight people were killed, including five refugees. Others, including UNHCR staff and police officers, were injured. According to UNHCR, three more refugees died from gunfire in Kiziba refugee camp on the same day. The Rwandan police, however, later confirmed a total of five deaths across both locations.[6][11][12][13][14] In the aftermath, the police contingent in the refugee camp was increased. The additional police forces arrived on 20 April.[15] Further conflicts between refugees and police occurred in April and May, and another refugee was killed.[14][15] Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch criticized the inadequate investigation of the deaths.[14][12]

Education and health

Children living in the camp are integrated into the national education system in accordance with the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.[5] According to UNHCR, in November 2022, 743 children from the camp attended an early childhood development facility, 3,018 attended primary school and 1,377 attended secondary school. The attendance rate was 95.5 percent. In 2015, UNHCR and the non-profit organization Kepler also established the Kepler University Campus for tertiary education; by 2022, around 300 students had graduated there.[1][16]

The refugee camp has a health centre that also serves the Rwandan population in surrounding areas. It includes a maternity ward, a laboratory, treatment rooms, a pharmacy and an inpatient ward.[2]

Sport

The camp takes part in the annual Refugee Inter-camp Games. At these games, refugees from the various refugee camps in Rwanda compete against one another in sports such as basketball and football.[17]

References

2°07′59″S 29°21′04″E / 2.133°S 29.351°E / -2.133; 29.351

  1. 1 2 3 4 "UNHCR Rwanda: Kiziba Camp Fact Sheet, 30 November 2022". ReliefWeb. UNHCR. 2023-02-14. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Kiziba Refugee Camp, Rwanda" (PDF; 377 KB). UNHCR. December 2023. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  3. ↑ "Rwanda: UNHCR concern at return of Congolese Tutsi". UNHCR. 2000-08-08. Retrieved 2026-03-26.
  4. ↑ "Where We Work". UNHCR. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  5. 1 2 3 Michel Nkurunziza (2025-12-23). "How refugees in Kiziba are coping after aid reductions". The New Times. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  6. 1 2 Dominic Johnson (2018-02-27). "Flüchtlinge aus Kongo in Ruanda: Polizei richtet Massaker in Kiziba an". taz.de (in German). Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  7. ↑ "UNHCR Rwanda: Kiziba Refugee Camp Profile (as of 29 April 2021)". ReliefWeb. UNHCR. 2025-05-05. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  8. ↑ "UNHCR Rwanda: Kiziba Camp Fact Sheet, February 2023". ReliefWeb. UNHCR. 2023-03-23. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  9. ↑ "Rwanda: Profile of Kiziba Camp - September 2023". ReliefWeb. UNHCR. 2023-06-11. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  10. ↑ "Rwanda: Kiziba Refugee Camp Factsheet - March 2024". UNHCR. 31 March 2024. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  11. 1 2 "Rwanda: Police shot dead 11 refugees in food riot". dw.com. 2018-02-27. Retrieved 2026-03-26.
  12. 1 2 "Rwanda: A Year On, No Justice for Refugee Killings". Human Rights Watch. 2019-02-23. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  13. ↑ "Food Rations For Refugees In Rwanda Are Reduced Amidst Funding Shortfalls". UNHCR. 2018-01-16. Retrieved 2026-03-26.
  14. 1 2 3 "Rwanda: Investigate Killings of Refugees". Amnesty International. 2019-02-22. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  15. 1 2 "Clashes in Rwanda camp lead to tragic refugee death". UNHCR. 2018-05-04. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  16. ↑ Jean d’Amour Mbonyinshuti (2023-03-30). "The campus in the camp: Restoring hope for refugee students". universityworldnews.com. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
  17. ↑ Emmanuel Nkangura (2025-08-13). "Refugee inter-camp games underway in Mahama". The New Times. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
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