United Nations Calls on Global Community to Provide More Assistance to African Refugees

The United Nations said on Tuesday that the global community must provide more assistance to millions of refugees across Sub-Saharan Africa, which is home to over a quarter of the world's refugees. According to the Associated Press, Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, spoke to reporters during a visit to the Dadaab camp, which was once the largest refugee camp in the world. He stated, "Funding for refugee programs in Africa is very difficult, and I am not ashamed to say this." Some of the poorest countries in the world, including Uganda and Eritrea, host hundreds of thousands of refugees from South Sudan and elsewhere. The Kenyan government wants to close the Dadaab camp, which houses 230,000 people, but the UN has called for patience in this matter, stating that all returns of refugees to their homeland must be voluntary. Kenyan courts ruled in February that the government should not close the camp. Some Kenyan officials claim that the camp, located near the Somali border, has become a recruitment ground for the extremist group al-Shabaab and a base for its armed attacks into Kenya. However, Kenyan officials have yet to provide concrete evidence to support this claim. The UN reports that over 32,000 Somali refugees have voluntarily returned to their country from this camp this year. Human rights organizations have expressed concern about pressure on refugees to leave the camp by the Kenyan government or through a 30% reduction in daily rations for refugees in October. The Associated Press adds that Filippo Grandi spoke with 20 Somali families intending to return during his visit to the Dadaab camp. The UN Refugee Agency states that about 19,000 refugees from this camp are in the process of returning to Somalia. Kenya was the last stop on Mr. Grandi's trip to the region, having also visited Djibouti and Somalia. He mentioned seeing some Somali refugees in that country who were satisfied with their return home, while others faced numerous challenges and needed assistance. He tweeted, "Returning home is a difficult and brave option because conditions in Somalia are still fragile." Parts of Somalia are experiencing drought, and the extremist group al-Shabaab continues its armed attacks, particularly in the capital, Mogadishu. In October, a truck bomb explosion left over 500 dead. Filippo Grandi stated, "We must help Somalia become stronger, and as a result, the conditions for people to return to this country will improve. Currently, many areas face insecurity and drought, other problems, and a lack of essential infrastructure." He added that many refugees he spoke with said they would not return until conditions in their country improved. The Dadaab camp was established in 1991, coinciding with the first wave of Somali refugees entering Kenya.