KAMPALA, March 25 (Xinhua) -- More than 31,000 Congolese have fled conflicts in their home country since January and are now seeking refuge in neighboring Uganda, the UN Refugee Agency said on Tuesday.

Frank Walusimbi, spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Uganda, told Xinhua by telephone that the refugees are fleeing violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and entering Uganda through the border district of Kisoro.

"We have received them, mostly women and children. They continue to arrive because the fighting has not ended," Walusimbi said.

He urged humanitarian relief for them. "We are still keeping them at the transit centers due to a lack of logistical support to transport them to the resettlement centers," he said.

In a post on the X platform, Jason Hepps, deputy representative of UNHCR Uganda, said that thousands of Congolese people continue to arrive daily, overwhelming the Nyakabande Transit Center in southwestern Uganda near the DRC border.

"Women are telling heart-wrenching stories of violence, sexual violence, and other harrowing experiences from their journey," Hepps said.

He said that the Ugandan government has kept its borders open to refugees.

"We need to improve water, sanitation, and health services, all of which are overwhelmed by the 7,000 people currently at Nyakabande Transit Center, about five times its capacity," Hepps added.

According to UNHCR figures, Uganda hosts about 1.8 million refugees, primarily from the DRC, South Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan, Rwanda, and Ethiopia. Enditem

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