as they go about collecting firewood or herding animals.45 This affects women’s socioeconomic activities as women fear to stray away from relatively safe areas for health, agriculture, food and water purposes. Conflict related sexual violence is a critical area of concern because it causes health, psychosocial and physical harm, and its consequences transcend conflict and post conflict phases. Given the weighty challenges posed by refugee populations for hosting countries, African states have striven to rise to the challenge. UN Secretary General Guterres affirmed Africa’s outstanding performance in dealing with forced migration, calling it ‘the Gold Standard’ for solidarity in terms of leadership, vision and compassion.46 Countries with progressive refugee rights regimes have emerged. Uganda has been commended by the UN Secretary General for its ‘generous asylum regime’ that not only enables refugees to live outside and enjoy rights alongside Ugandans but also integrates their issues in national development and service delivery processes.47 Despite the manifest commitment and goodwill of Africa countries to deal with the problem of refugees and IDPs, particularly women and girls, the challenges are immense. The humanitarian assistance response required and the capacities and resources to enable this are an additional burden to host countries that already struggle with meeting the welfare of citizens for basic services. As has been reiterated by Africa’s leaders and peoples, durable solutions lie in addressing the root causes of conflict that trigger forced displacement, including through a governance and gender lens. Without a strong women, peace and security approach to conflict resolution, forced displacement will remain an indictment on governance failures on the continent. 45 UNHRC ‘UNHCR's Women Victims of Violence Project in Kenya: An Evaluation Summary EC/1995/SC.2/CRP.22 June 1995. Available at https://www.unhcr.org/excom/scaf/3ae68bf90/unhcrs-womenvictims-violence-project-kenya-evaluation-summary.html 46 United Nations ‘Africa Has Set Gold Standard for Solidarity, Secretary-General Tells Regional Summit, Citing Unmatched Generosity to Those Seeking Safe Haven 10 February 2019. Available at https://www.un.org/press/en/2019/sgsm19459.doc.htm 47 Kampala Declaration on Refugees 2017 at the Uganda Solidarity Summit on Refugees 25