Kampala — The German Development Services (DED) has commissioned projects worth over sh300m to benefit communities hosting Congolese refugees in Nebbi district.

The DED programme coordinator, Adolf Gerstl, said the projects under the health, water, education and technical support sectors, were meant to complement local communities that have harmoniously hosted the refugees in the last seven years. "We comprehend that the displaced population is not living in an established camp or settlement.

This means that they access and consequently strain the social services meant for the indigenous population, hence the need for intervention," Gerstl said on Thursday.

Close to 15,000 Congolese have since 2002 taken refuge among the border societies in Nebbi after fleeing ethnic clashes between armed groups in the eastern Ituri region of the DR Congo. There is also an estimated 10,000 more who live in Congo but depend on the social services provided by Nebbi district.