The United Nations or UN refugee agency announced on Tuesday that Ethiopia became the largest refugee-hosting country in Africa, sheltering at least 629 thousand refugees from the end of July compared to Kenya that hosts 575 thousand refugees and asylum-seekers.
In a statement, UNHCR said continuous conflict in South Sudan is the main factor, pushing more than 188 thousand refugees into Ethiopia since the beginning of 2014.
The statement added that there are now 247 thousand South Sudanese refugees in Ethiopia, making them the largest refugee population in the continent.
UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told reporters in Geneva that the gency, the Ethiopian government and other partners are providing protection and humanitarian aid in 23 refugee camps and five transit sites around and in Ethiopia.
As of mid-August, 1.8 million South Sudanese were displaced, 1.3 million internally displaced and more than 575 thousand refugees in neighbouring countries.