The number of people seeking refuge and asylum in Kenya’s refugee camps fell by 69.8 percent in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period last year, as displacement, mainly from South Sudan and Sudan, slowed.
Kenya registered 5,837 new arrivals between January and June 2026, down from 19,305 in the same period in 2025, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
This slowdown coincides with a reduction in conflict-driven displacement from South Sudan and Sudan, which the UNHCR identified as the main sources of last year’s surge in arrivals.
The steepest year-on-year declines occurred in February and April. February saw 416 new arrivals, a decrease of 91.1 percent compared to February 2025, which had the highest monthly figure of last year at 4,688. April saw 933 arrivals, down 78.3 percent from 4,305 a year earlier.
Both of these months in 2025 saw significant influxes of people tied to the escalating conflict in South Sudan and Sudan.
Last month, however, new arrivals rose to 2,069, surpassing the 1,826 recorded in June 2025 and marking the highest monthly total so far in 2026.
January and May followed the wider downward trend, with arrivals falling to 154 in January 2025 (down 94.6 percent from 2,853) and to 1,118 in May (down 42.9 percent from 1,957).
Somalia and South Sudan continued to account for the largest share of Kenya’s refugee population, historically contributing the bulk of new arrivals.
Despite the decline in new arrivals, Kenya’s refugee and asylum-seeker population continued to grow, increasing by 2.5 percent over six months, from 835,836 in January to 857,065 in June. Dadaab and Kakuma together hosted 86 percent of that population, with Dadaab alone accounting for nearly half.
An asylum is a form of protection offered to people who have fled their home countries due to persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution based on factors such as race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion.
The decline in new arrivals coincides with the implementation of Kenya’s Shirika Plan, which aims to integrate refugees into host communities instead of confining them to the Dadaab and Kakuma camps.
While the government has repeatedly stated its intention to close these camps over the past decade, previous closure orders have been overturned by the High Court.
In 2025, Kenya launched the Shirika Plan to promote the integration of refugees into host communities and attract development financing, marking a move away from the confinement system that has kept many families in Dadaab for nearly 30 years.
Under the policy adopted in 2024, refugees are issued with identity cards, one of six types of refugee identification documents, which will allow them to access public services.
