More than 40,000 South Sudanese have crossed into Uganda since the beginning of this month due to conflict in the Equatoria region, the UN Refugee Agency has said.

In a statement, UNHCR says the new arrivals mainly fled insecurity in Torit, Kapoeta, among other areas in the region.

They were received in Elegu, Afogi, and Lefori border points in northern Uganda.

The agency says an average of 2,956 refugees crossed the border from South Sudan into Uganda each day, with 5,116 recorded in a single day on 9th March.

It says majority of them are women and children who reported general insecurity, limited access to food and basic services in their respective areas.

UNHCR says the community of Ogili Sub-County in Palabek, Lamwo districts of Uganda, has offered land with the capacity to host approximately 30,000 of refugees.

“In Lamwo district, the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) obtained a written agreement from the landowners of Ogili Sub-County in Palabek for the use of their land for refugee settlement,” partly reads the statement.

Uganda currently hosts 800,000 South Sudanese refugees.