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Burundi Red Cross workers responsible for disinfecting sites in the Busuma refugee camp. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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ICRC staff member Noemie Niyongere assists Congolese refugee Annuarite Yamwaka at a connectivity centre. Annuarite fled fighting in Eastern Congo, and was separated from 3 of her children in the course of the displacement. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi Note: My name is Annuarite Yamwaka. I am originally from Lubarika. I left Lubarika in December 2025 and took refuge in Sange. Then I decided to cross the river and settle at the Kansega transit site. I arrived there on December 10, then left on December 12 for Busuma. I am looking for my three children who are in Bujumbura.

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Refugees transport water to the Busuma camp, which is home to Congolese communities who have fled conflict. 4th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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ICRC staff member Noemie Niyongere poses for a portrait in the Busuma refugee camp. 4th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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Burundi Red Cross workers responsible for disinfecting sites in the Busuma refugee camp. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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Maryam Batacoka, a Congolese refugee living in the Busuma camp with her child Promesse, uses an ICRC connectivity service for news of home. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi Notes: My name is Maryam Batacoka. I am originally from Luvungi and my baby's name is Promesse. I have three children. I am looking for my aunt who is in Uvira. I arrived in December 2025 via Vugizo (a town in Burundi). I was able to reach my aunt, she is fine. Conditions are tough in the camp.

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ICRC staff member Noemie Niyongere assists Congolese refugee Annuarite Yamwaka at a connectivity centre. Annuarite fled fighting in Eastern Congo, and was separated from 3 of her children in the course of the displacement. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi Note: My name is Annuarite Yamwaka. I am originally from Lubarika. I left Lubarika in December 2025 and took refuge in Sange. Then I decided to cross the river and settle at the Kansega transit site. I arrived there on December 10, then left on December 12 for Busuma. I am looking for my three children who are in Bujumbura.

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Maryam Batacoka is a Congolese refugee living in the Busuma camp with her child Promesse. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi Notes: My name is Maryam Batacoka. I am originally from Luvungi and my baby's name is Promesse. I have three children. I am looking for my aunt who is in Uvira. I arrived in December 2025 via Vugizo (a town in Burundi). I was able to reach my aunt, she is fine. Conditions are tough in the camp.

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Fataki Zawadi, a Congolese refugee living in the Busuma camp, poses for a portrait with his daughter Charlotte, who he was separated from during their displacement. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi. Notes: I arrived in Burundi in December 2025. We stayed for two weeks at the Kansega transit camp, and now we’re in Busuma. I’m here with my seven children. When we left Kansega, everything happened very quickly. Due to the large number of refugees at the Kansega camp who needed to be urgently relocated to the Busuma camp by bus, I lost track of my daughter.” I don’t know how it happened. We arrived to Busuma on 19 December, and since that moment, I’ve been in the anguish not finding her again. But on 27 February, I finally found her with the support of the Red Cross. I’m very grateful and I was to thank you. My daughter is named Loria Charlotte, she’s 16 years old. Life is hard here. We struggle to find food. We have no shelter and it’s very cold. We don’t have good clothes and it’s difficult to fetch water. If I was offered to go back to the DRC now, I would go immediately. Here, there’s no school for the children. I know there a health center in the camp, but there’s no medicine. For instance, if you get malaria, you only get a tab of paracetamol. And my son here, he got diarrhea, but they couldn’t do anything for him.

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Esperance Sakina Hatari, a Congolese refugee living at the Busuma camp. 4th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi Notes: Esperance Sakina Hatari is from Mutarule, a village in the South Kivu. She arrived in December 2025 after fleeing violence in the DRC that forced more than half a million people to leave their homes. She now spends her days making charcoal near the entrance of the camp, hoping to earn a little money. “It’s not easy for us refugees because we left everything behind when we fled. We left with nothing. We came with our children, that’s all. Some of us have no food, no shelter and no blankets. We sleep on the ground, and the children are dying of cold and hunger,” said Esperance. “My husband and I got separated. He is there, and I am here alone with the children. Many families have been separated.” Like Esperance and her children, many families arrived with almost nothing. Countless refugees still do not know the fate of relatives who remained in Congo.

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Estelle Tilifoza, a Congolese refugee from the town of Baraka, who has fled to Burundi. 4th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi NOTES: Estelle Tilifoza is from Baraka. She travelled through the town of Rumonge in southern Burundi with her husband and five children. 'Life isn't easy,' she says. 'We have neither a home nor enough food. We also don't have enough blankets. I'd like to go back home, but I don't know what the security situation is like in my hometown. To get here, we crossed Lake Tanganyika. I was scared because it was my first time on the lake. We lost all our belongings in the water during the crossing. I was sick. I’ll never forget that terrifying journey.

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Congolese refugees trade produce at the market of the Busuma refugee camp. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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Congolese refugees trade produce at the market of the Busuma refugee camp. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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A church service underway in the Busuma camp, where Congolese refugees have sought shelter from conflict. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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A Burundi Red Cross worker helps Maria Chakupwa, a Congolese refugee, place a phone call to her missing niece. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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Nema Shukuru, a Congolese refugee, uses an ICRC service to call her neighbour for news back in Congo, as she has been unable to locate her husband since her displacement. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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Refugees transport supplies to the Busuma camp, home to Congolese communities who have fled conflict. 4th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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The main road to the Busuma refugee camp, home to Congolese communities who have fled fighting in Eastern Congo. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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A water tanker arrives in the Busuma refugee camp for Congolese communities who have fled fighting. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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Marie Sakina, a Congolese refugee, poses for a portrait on the periphery of the Busuma camp. 4th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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ICRC staff member Noemie Niyongere assists a Congolese refugee at a connectivity centre. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi

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Congolese refugee Annuarite Yamwaka in the Busuma camp. Annuarite fled fighting in Eastern Congo, and was separated from 3 of her children in the course of the displacement. 5th March 2026, Busuma, Burundi Note: My name is Annuarite Yamwaka. I am originally from Lubarika. I left Lubarika in December 2025 and took refuge in Sange. Then I decided to cross the river and settle at the Kansega transit site. I arrived there on December 10, then left on December 12 for Busuma. I am looking for my three children who are in Bujumbura.

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Justine Yalara Nyegamo, a Congolese refugee in the Busuma camp, poses for a portrait with her granddaughter. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi Notes: My son-in-law was killed on December 9, 2025, on the Kavimvira bridge. My daughter was with him, she got very scared and ran away. My 15-year-old granddaughter arrived at my house with the baby, Rehema Bonidé, just as I was preparing to flee, and they have been with me ever since. Two days later, we heard gunfire and bombs started to fall on the hills, so we headed for Gatumba, where there was a transit center on the border. We were then transferred to Busuma. Conditions in the camp are harsh. We don't have enough to eat, our shelter is very small, there are many diseases, and when it rains, water leaks through our shelter. At first, we received a little food, but that has stopped now. Due to lack of funds, she would prefer the children to return to the DRC, and she would like to as well, but she does not have enough money for the trip.

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Nema Shukuru, a Congolese refugee, uses an ICRC service to call her neighbour for news back in Congo, as she has been unable to locate her husband since her displacement. 3rd March 2026, Busuma, Burundi