The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Filippo Grandi

  • UN yet to reach its potential -Trump

    UN yet to reach its potential -Trump

    United States President, Donald Trump, criticised the United Nations for bloated bureaucracy and mismanagement on his first visit on Monday to UN headquarters, calling for “truly bold reforms” so it could be a force for world peace.

    He made this known during his first remarks at the UN in New York since his inauguration as president in January.

    Ahead of his maiden speech to the annual UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump hosted a short event to boost support for changes to the UN.

    “In recent years the UN has not reached its full potential because of bureaucracy and mismanagement, while the UN on a regular budget has increased by 140 per cent.

    “Its staff has more than doubled since 2000.

    “The UN must hold every level of management accountable, protect whistleblowers and focus on results rather than on process.

    “I am confident that if we work together and champion truly bold reforms the UN will emerge as a stronger, more effective, more just and greater force for peace and harmony in the world,” Trump said.

    In a building where long statements are commonplace, Trump spoke for just four minutes.

    More than 120 countries were invited to attend Monday’s reform meeting after signing on to a U.S.-drafted 10-point political declaration backing efforts by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “to initiate effective, meaningful reform.”

    Businessman Trump, who complained during his 2016 election campaign about the U.S. paying a disproportionate amount of money to the United Nations, made the point again on Monday.

    “We must ensure that no one and no member state shoulders a disproportionate share of the burden and that’s militarily or financially.”

    The U.S. is the biggest U.N. contributor, providing 22 per cent of its 5.4 billion dollars biennial core budget and 28.5 per cent of its 7.3 billion dollars peacekeeping budget.

    The contributions are agreed on by the 193-member General Assembly.

    Guterres, who also took office in January, told the meeting: “To serve the people we support and the people who support us, we must be nimble and effective, flexible and efficient.”

    He agreed that UN bureaucracy was a problem that kept him up at night.

    “Our shared objective is a 21st century UN focused more on people and less on process, value for money while advancing shared values that is our common goal,’’ Guterres said.

    Trump also said that all peacekeeping missions should “have clearly defined goals and metrics for evaluating success.”

    The U.S. is reviewing each of the UN peacekeeping missions as annual mandates come up for Security Council renewal in a bid to cut costs.

    The U.S. is a veto-wielding council member, along with Britain, France, Russia and China.

    On Sunday night, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has met with UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi.

    When asked if the UN refugee agency could perform its current missions if the U.S. cut its voluntary contributions to the budget, according to a pool report Grandi answered: “I would say no.”

    “U.S. aid is vital to what we do to support refugees around the world and to find solutions to their situations,” Grandi said.

  • Nigerian wins 2017 UNHCR Refugees Award

    Nigerian wins 2017 UNHCR Refugees Award

    A Nigerian, Mr Zannah Mustapha, the Director, Future Prowess Islamic Foundation School, has won the UN High Commission for Refugees ( UNHCR ) 2017 Nansen Refugees Award.

    Mustapha, the first Nigerian Laureate of the award, will be unveiled on Monday in Abuja.

    UNHCR and the Norwegian Refugees Council said on Monday that Mustapha was chosen as the winner of the award for his humanitarian works in championing the rights of children.

    They noted that Mustapha’s NGO not only provides education for children but also caters to the needs of orphans, widows and abandoned children affected by the Boko Haram insurgency, thereby bringing succour to them.

    In a statement issued in Geneva on Monday, Mr Filippo Grandi, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said: “Education is one of the most powerful tools for helping refugee children overcome the horrors of violence and forced displacement.

    “It empowers young people, equips them with skills and works to counter exploitation and recruitment by armed groups.

    “Conflict can leave children with physical and emotional scars that are deep and lasting as it forces them from their homes, exposes them to unspeakable atrocities and often rips apart their families.

    “The work Mustapha and his team are doing is of the utmost importance, helping to foster peaceful coexistence and rebuild communities in North-Eastern Nigeria.

    “With this award, we honour his vision and services,’’ Grandi said.

    Speaking with NAN in Abuja, Mr Jose-Antonio Canhandula, UNHCR Representative to Nigeria, said that Mustapha was recoginsed for his efforts in championing the rights of children.

    “In addition to his education work, Mustapha has demonstrated commitment to helping all parts of the society affected by the conflict which includes setting up cooperatives for widows and supporting nearly 600 women in Maiduguri.

    “The UNHCR recognises his role as a mediator between the government and the insurgents for the release of the 82 chibok girls and the 21 young women held captive by Boko Haram for two years,’’ Canhandula said.

    In a separate statement, issued by the Norwegian Refugees Council, its Secretary-General, Mr Jan Egeland, said that the recognition of Mustapha’s brave works highlighted the importance of education for the future of Nigeria.

    “Schools lie at the heart of a society and destroying them crushes the chance of Nigeria’s next generation succeeding,’’ Egeland said.

    In his reaction to the award, Mustapha told NAN in Abuja that he felt humbled and honoured to be “listed among great icons’’ in the world for his humanitarian works in the North-East.

    He said that the award would give impetus to his humanitarian works as his vision is for the activities of his foundation to serve as a template for peaceful reconciliation in the North-East and other parts of the country.

    He said that in just a decade since its inception, the school had recorded tremendous success, which gives him the assurance that peaceful reconciliation through education and integration is achievable.

    Mustapha told NAN that founded his NGO in 2007 to provide free education, meals, uniforms and healthcare to children and orphans among others, in an effort to engender peace and reconciliation.

    “We started with 36 students and have graduated more 1,000 students; enrolled 626 in 2017, more than half of whom are girls, including 186 IDPs with 5,000 on the waiting list.

    “These children include children from both the military and the Boko Haram and they have grown to see themselves as one.

    “If it continues like this, then we are sure of peaceful reconciliation and an end to the insurgency,’’ Mustapha said.

    NAN reports that the 2017 Nansen Refugees Award will be presented to Mustapha on Oct. 2, in Geneva.

    The UNHCR Nansen Refugees award was established in 1954 and awarded annually to an individual, group or organization in recognition of outstanding service to the cause of refugees, displaced and stateless persons.

    The award includes a commonwealth medal and monetary prize of 100,000 dollars donated by the governments of Norway and Switzerland to begin a project in consultation with UNHCR, to complement the laureate’s existing work.

  • 3.5m children refugee out-of-school – UNHCR

    3.5m children refugee out-of-school – UNHCR

    At least 3.5 million children refugee did not have the chance to attend school in the last academic year, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) has said.

    The UN refugee agency in a report: ‘Left Behind: Refugee Education in Crisis’ published on Tuesday, called for education to be made a vital component of humanitarian response.

    The report said there were 6.4 million refugees of school age between five and 17 among the 17.2 million refugees under the mandate of UNHCR.

    “The education of these young people is crucial to the peaceful and sustainable development of the countries that had welcomed them, and to their homes when they are able to return.

    “Yet compared to other children and adolescents around the world, the gap in opportunity for refugees is growing ever wider,” the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, said.

    Globally, 91 per cent of children attended primary school and for refugees that figure is far lower at only 61 per cent, according to the report.

    “The figure is even less than 50 per cent in low-income countries.

    “As refugee children get older, the obstacles only increase as just 23 per cent of refugee adolescents are enrolled in secondary school, compared to 84 per cent globally.

    “In low-income countries, which host 28 per cent of the world’s refugees, the number in secondary education is disturbingly low, at a mere nine per cent,” he added.

    Grandi said ensuring that refugees had equitable access to quality education is a shared responsibility.

    NAN

  • UNHCR cautions against involuntary return of Nigerian refugees

    UNHCR cautions against involuntary return of Nigerian refugees

    The Office of the UN Human Rights Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has cautioned against the forceful return of Nigerian refugees from Cameroon.

    The UN Refugee Agency gave the caution in a statement on Thursday following the return of 887 Nigerian refugees on Tuesday.

    “The refugees were rounded up at 19:30 (7:30 p.m) local time and forcibly removed to Banki in Nigeria in desperate conditions.”

    The agency said that the refugees were repatriated in six trucks provided by the Nigerian military and Cameroonian police from the Kolofata border site adding that most of them were children.

    It added that it was alarmed over the forced returns of refugees from Cameroon into northeast Nigeria and recalled that similar incidents had occurred earlier in the year.

    It further stated that repeated warnings had been made concerning the situation in which conditions did not yet exist to make returns safe and sustainable.

    The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi said: “The involuntary return of refugees must be avoided under any circumstances.

    “In addition, returns to Nigeria put a strain on the few existing services and are not sustainable at this time.

    “A new emergency, just as the rainy season is starting, has to be avoided at all costs.”

    The high commissioner for refugees said the agency remained concerned for the children.

    “We also understand that several dozen refugees, fearing that they would be returned against their will, escaped and went into hiding.”

    The UNHCR reiterated that insecurity in the northeast prevented refugees from returning to their places of origin with many of them ending up in Banki where more than 45,000 internally displaced persons were barely accommodated.

    It also repeated its appeal to the authorities in Cameroon to allow newly arrived Nigerian refugees to reach Minawao camp, where about 58,000 refugees are currently being hosted, with another 33,000 living in nearby villages.

    The agency further renewed its call on Cameroon and Nigeria to refrain from further forced returns.

    It also urged both parties to take urgent steps to convene a meeting of the Tripartite Commission, established under a recent agreement with UNHCR to ensure a facilitated voluntary return process in line with international standards.

    The UN agency also emphasised the importance of all states to ensure international protection for all those fleeing insecurity and persecution in the northeast.

  • 200 killed in migrant shipwrecks

    Almost 200 people are feared to have died in two Mediterranean Sea migrant shipwrecks during the weekend, according to reports on Monday.
    The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Libya said that seven people were rescued off the north-western city of Zawiya, and one of them said 113 others were missing.
    The information was posted on Twitter and confirmed by an IOM Spokesman in Rome, Flavio Di Giacomo.
    Separately, 80 people died on Saturday after the rubber dinghy they were travelling on overturned, according to the ANSA news agency, which sourced its report from survivors’ accounts to Italian prosecutors.
    The sea channel between Italy and Libya is the world’s busiest and most dangerous sea migration route.
    More than 6,600 people were rescued there between Friday and Sunday.
    On Sunday, the Head of the UN Refugee Agency UNHCR, Filippo Grandi, said more than 1,150 people died or went missing since the start of the year in sea crossings to Europe.
    Grandi added that the mortality rate on the Libya-Italy route was one in 35.
    He praised efforts by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), noting they had carried out one third of rescue operations since January 1, and renewed calls for EU authorities to open legal migration channels to spare people from dangerous sea journeys.
    NGO involvement in sea rescues has become controversial since an Italian prosecutor accused them of acting in cahoots with Libyan people smugglers.
    The prosecutor says he has suspicions but no proof; the NGOs have rejected all charges.

     

  • UN says Trump’s new plan will worsen refugees’ woes

    UN says Trump’s new plan will worsen refugees’ woes

    The UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) Filippo Grandi says it is concerned that the new Executive Order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump on refugee resettlement on Monday will worsen the agonies of refugees.

    The UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, in his reaction to Trump’s new travel ban, insisted that refugees are not criminals.

    “Refugees are ordinary people forced to flee war, violence and persecution in their home countries and who remain in urgent need of life-saving assistance and protection.

    “The imperative remains to provide protection for people fleeing deadly violence, and we are concerned that this decision, though temporary, may compound the anguish for those it affects.

    “The UNHCR has long been a partner for the U.S. in finding solutions to refugee problems, and we look forward to continuing this partnership,” he said.

    In the wake of the new order, the head of the UN refugee agency reiterated its readiness to engage constructively with Trump’s orders to ensure all refugee programmes meet the highest standards for safety and security.

    “Americans have long played a crucial role in promoting global stability while simultaneously exemplifying the highest humanitarian ideals, from support for refugee emergencies overseas, to welcoming some of the most vulnerable refugee families in the United States to rebuild their lives in safety, freedom and dignity.

    “This is the gold standard in refugee protection and a powerful model for all countries that at a time of record-high levels of forced human displacement, this kind of humane leadership is needed more than ever.”

    Grandi’s statement followed the signing of the Executive Order that would, among other things, suspend the country’s refugee programme for 120 days.

    However, under the old order, Syrian refugees were barred indefinitely.

    It would also bar for 90 days, travel to the U.S. by citizens of Iran, Libya, Syria, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.

    The measure followed a similar order signed by Trump on Jan. 27, which barred all nationals from the countries, including Iraq.

    However, Iraq was removed from the new order following what the U.S. Government said was the country’s cooperation in ensuring effective vetting of immigrants to the U.S.

  • 5million refugees in Africa in 2016

    5million refugees in Africa in 2016

    No fewer than five million refugees were in Africa as at 2016 from 2.6 million in 2011, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said.

    The Executive Director of WFP, Ertharin Cousin, and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, in a joint statement issued on Monday, also warned that no fewer than two million of the refugees were facing critical shortages in food assistance in 10 countries across Africa.

    “The number of refugees in Africa nearly doubled from 2.6 million in 2011 to nearly five million in 2016.

    “While donor funding for refugee assistance increased during this period, it did not keep pace with rapidly rising needs.

    “As a result, the humanitarian response is significantly underfunded and this has forced cuts in food assistance for some groups of refugees.

    “Ten refugee operations in Africa have experienced cuts and food rations have been dramatically cut – in some cases by up to 50 percent – in large operations including Cameroon, Chad, Kenya, Mauritania, South Sudan and Uganda,” Cousin and Grandi said.

    The WFP and UNHCR chiefs explained that the refugees needed urgent intervention to prevent severe malnutrition and stay alive.

    “Millions of refugees depend on WFP food and our work to treat and prevent malnutrition to stay alive.

    “But in Africa, they are in danger of being overshadowed by large humanitarian crises elsewhere,” they said.

    According to them, refugees in Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Burundi and Ethiopia have had specific commodities cut including micronutrient fortified blended foods, needed to ensure an adequate quality diet.

    “We can’t imagine how difficult life is for thousands of refugee families with no food, and often denied the possibility to work or provide for themselves in other ways.

    “Refugees are extraordinarily resilient, but cuts in food assistance – sometimes as high as 50 percent – are having a devastating impact on the health and nutrition of thousands of families,” they said.