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Dev-News News Desk| East Africa. Urge- DevWire

Nyarugusu camp nears closure as final Burundian refugees leave Tanzania

Nyarugusu, Tanzania, 8 July 2026

The Nyarugusu refugee camp, which hosted more than 50,000 Burundian refugees less than a year ago, is now almost empty, with fewer than 200 Burundians remaining as repatriation operations accelerated over the preceding two months. According to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, nearly 200,000 Burundian refugees remain in exile across the region, including in Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Kenya.

The camp had originally been scheduled for closure on 30 June 2026 under the tripartite agreement between Tanzania, Burundi and UNHCR, with an additional month granted to complete repatriation of the last Burundian refugees. Tanzanian authorities said the voluntary repatriation exercise was more than 90 percent complete, with camp infrastructure to be handed over to the government for public use. Humanitarian assistance previously provided by the World Food Programme has been suspended for the remaining Burundian refugees in the camp, with UNHCR stating that its efforts have focused on repatriation, return packages and reintegration support in Burundi.

UNHCR has previously said all refugee returns from Tanzania must be voluntary, safe and dignified, in line with the principle of non refoulement under international refugee law.

Source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees data.