SUDANESE IN EGYPT As of October 2006, there were 19,162 recognized refugees registered with the UNHCR office in Cairo. 13,446 are Sudanese, with a male to female ratio of 64:36 percent. Some 34 percent of the refugee population is made of children under the age of 18. More than 80 percent of Sudanese refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt are Christian southerners. It's very difficult to estimate the thousands of Sudanese who are not registered with the UNHCR. The majority of refugees in Egypt live in rented apartments dispersed throughout the poor quarters of Cairo where they join the urban poor in competing for limited resources and jobs. However, refugees are unable to access subsistence, work, state education, and national health care on the same basis as nationals. The signing of the comprehensive peace agreement between the Sudanese government and the Sudanese People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in January 2005 has brought greater prospects of repatriation. However, the rate of return from Egypt to Sudan at present is negligible given that there is still no infrastructure or sustainable livelihood opportunities for them in southern Sudan. Nowadays many Sudanese are migrating to Israel from Cairo. It will take some time to redevelop and rehabilitate southern Sudan to a level that will encourage large numbers of Sudanese in exile to return. In the meantime, Sacred Heart church will continue to maintain its role in supporting the refugee community in Cairo.

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