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Tag: UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)

  • Human rights group blames Borno govt over plight of 100,000 refugees from Cameroon

    The Save Humanity Advocacy Centre (SHAC), a human rights group, has blamed the Borno State Government over the plight of no fewer than 100,000 refugees recently expelled from Cameroon.
    Cameroon is currently home to more than 370,000 refugees, including some 100,000 from Nigeria, according to the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR).
    Recently, the Cameroonian government started the eviction of the refugees with larger proportion of the affected persons being women, children and persons that are infirm on account of old age, injury or poor health
    SHAC, which said it had been tracking the plan by authorities in Cameroon to evict the refugees in the country, fingered the Borno State government in the ugly development.
    Thomas Ejuma, Executive Director of the group at a press conference on Monday in Abuja, claimed that Cameroon made the decision to sack the Nigerian refugees as pariahs because the Borno State government failed in its responsibility to its displaced citizens.
    Ejuma said despite the State government collecting and pocketing huge allocation, there was no road to Rann, one of the communities housing the IDPs.
    He said, “SHAC is shocked that Cameroon could be contemplating this move knowing that the larger proportion of the affected persons are women, children and persons that are infirm on account of old age, injury or poor health. The process of returning these families to Nigeria is fraught with risk since Boko Haram has been known to operate on the Cameroonian borders, which implies they could be attacked in their way back.
    “The development poses questions about Cameroon’s commitment to long term peace in the region since its tepid support for Nigeria’s quest to end Boko Haram’s reign of terror is a factor that contributed to the dislocation of the Nigerian refugees that is now planning to force outside its territory.
    “Cameroon got to this arrogant stage of treating Nigerian refugees as pariahs because the Borno State government failed in its responsibility to its displaced citizens. Without intent to politicise this matter and without prejudice to the ongoing debates about the mechanics of Nigeria’s federalism, the Borno state government failed to act in a way that will promote the fiscal federalism being canvassed across the country. It shirked its responsibility to create the situation were women, children and the aged have been put through hell and they are likely on a ride into the core of hell going by the plan of the Cameroonian authorities.

    Read Also:34,000 Cameroonian refugees in Cross River

    “The Borno State government consistently misled the Federal Government as to the true state of affairs on ground such that the necessarily federal interventions are planned on the strength of such misleading presentations by the state government.
    “The failure of the state government to properly manage relief efforts, including the chronic theft and diversion of relief materials by its officials, created hardship in the Internally Displaced Persons (IPDs) camps, which made taking flight across international borders more attractive to persons dislocated by Boko Haram activities. Even when the state became aware that its citizens are taking such desperate measures, it did little to reassure them and build their confidence to a level where they are willing to voluntarily return.
    “Borno government has much to explain about this failure to provide support like inaccessibility of several towns and villages of the state through Nigeria, which makes it easier for indigenes of these communities to get to Cameroon faster than they can relocate to other parts of Borno state. There is no road to Rann and other places due to criminal neglect on the part of the state, even though Rann is a local government headquarters, it can only be accessed through Cameroon to access.
    “Assuming the infrastructure was destroyed by the insurgency, SHAC recall urging the state government, sometimes in the recent past, to rebuild these infrastructure as part of measure to empower the people to occupy their community and keep out Boko Haram stragglers that occupy deserted towns and villages and always tip their commanders off about the vulnerability of such unoccupied towns.
    “It is therefore pertinent to ask Borno State governor, Kashim Ibrahim Shettima, who has a stranglehold on the finances of local government councils, to explain what happened to the resources meant for Rann Local Government Area and other poorly managed local government areas of the state in the last seven years. This mismanagement of resources has proven to produce a deadly cocktail when combined with Boko Haram’s acts of terror in addition to fuelling grassroots poverty that has ensured the terrorists have a steady stream of recruits.
    “The international body has chronically failed to censure countries providing the enabling environment for terrorist groups like Boko Haram to thrive. It is instead seen as being cooperatively in the pocket of such nations without as much as a whimper when make decisions and take actions that place weapons and funding in the hands of terrorists. It has failed to intervene when countries fighting terrorists are blocked from buying arms to prosecute their war efforts. Even in instances where forceful regime change has led to creation of fertile grounds for terrorist groups to grow, the countries involved in provoking such situation are not pressured to make things right.
    “The Federal Government of Nigeria has an onerous task on its hands. It can no longer continue to ignore the failure of the Borno state government to perform its constitutional duties. The time for indifference over how Borno state is run by Shettima and his aides is over. While the state governor presently enjoys immunity, his retinue of aides are not covered by the same immunity so the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should be brought in to unravel what they did with funds that should have made the situation different.
    “The EFCC should on the strength of its investigation of these aides make the preparation needed to take Shettima in for questioning when his tenure with the conferred immunity is over.”
  • 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.

  • Tuface holds charity concert to support UNHCR activities in North-East

    Tuface holds charity concert to support UNHCR activities in North-East

    As part of efforts to assist displaced persons, Tuface Foundation is organising a fund raising charity concert to support the activities of the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in the North-East.

    Musical icon Innocent Idibia, popularly known as Tuface, made this known while briefing journalists on Thursday in Abuja.

    Tuface said that the concert would take place on Sunday at Transcorp Hilton, Hotel, Abuja, and urged Nigerians to support the cause.

    He said that 60 per cent of the proceeds would be donated to UNHCR to support its interventions in the North-East.

    According to him, the humanitarian challenges in the North-East are enormous and a big task for the UNHCR.

    He said that he had pledged his commitment to support the UNHCR in alleviating the plight of displaced persons.

    The assistance, he said, would not be limited to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) but also to Nigerian refugees in other countries, who are victims of the Boko Haram insurgency.

    The singer urged Nigerians to support the cause by attending the concert and by downloading his newly released song dedicated to the displaced persons as their ring and caller back tones.

    “I am very proud to support the UN Refugee Agency at the forefront of the displacement emergencies.

    “Who will support our brothers and sisters, if we don’t?

    “I care deeply about the IDPs and refugees cause and I promised in February to hold this charity concert and this is happening.

    “I am dedicating my music and talent to this noble cause and I challenge everybody to do the same; let us make Africa great again.”

    Tuface said that visiting the North-East seeing things for himself, further made him to know the true situation in the region, which a lot of people were not aware of.

    He commended UNHCR for its transparency and judicious use of resources for its interventions.

    He also urged the government to do more in assisting the IDPs and to ensure that peace and normalcy returned to the region in due time.

    In his remarks, Mr Jose-Anthonio Canhandula, UNHCR Representative to Nigeria, thanked Tuface for supporting the Agency’s intervention in the North-East.

    Canhandula was represented by Mr Hollo Roger, UNHCR’s Senior Liaison Officer to the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Commission.

    He said that with the global displacement figure reaching over 65 million, the needs were enormous while funding contributions were inadequate for the actual requirement.

    “Unless we combine forces with the powerful voices of Tubaba and others, the begging bowls of alms will remain with us.

    “In the light of the huge funding needs, Africa’s private sector can be key in by supporting UNHCR’s efforts towards refugees and displaced persons.

    “The resources that this concert can raise will help ensure that displaced families are provided with shelter, water, health, education and other essentials,” Canhandula said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that in February, the Tuface Foundation made the first donation of N3.5 million to UNHCR and promised to do a new song in honour of the refugees and IDPs.

    The song was released on June 20 in commemoration of the 2017 World Refugees Day.

    He further promised that 60 per cent of the proceeds would be donated to UNHCR to support its interventions in the North-East.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the concert, dubbed “Eargasm”, will feature other artists with tickets to be sold for the highest table at N3 million and the lowest for N50,000.

  • NHRC trains MDAs on caring for IDPs in northeast

    NHRC trains MDAs on caring for IDPs in northeast

    The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has organised a special training for personnel of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) saddled with catering for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), in parts of the north.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the two-day training is being organised in collaboration with the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Jos.

    Speaking at the opening ceremony, Mrs. Oti Ovrawah, NHRC Acting Executive Secretary, said that the training was part of the commission’s steps to safeguard the interest of the IDPs.

    “We want to effectively monitor the humanitarian situation in the IDPs’ camps; we want to ensure that they do not suffer,” she said.

    She said that the trainees would be tutored on how to draw government’s attention to the humanitarian situation in the camps, and ways to respond to the needs of the IDPs and make them less vulnerable.

    “They will also be trained on how to package requests to government and attract prompt response,” he said.

    Ovrawah said that the training would avail MDAs working in project states the opportunity to synergise and strategise for better result.

    NAN reports that the training drew participants from Adamawa, Bauchi, Taraba, Gombe, and Yola in the North East, and Benue in the North Central.

  • AU launches humanitarian law, policy training initiative

    AU launches humanitarian law, policy training initiative

    The African Union (AU), on Wednesday, launched its first Humanitarian Law and Policy Training Initiative in Livingstone, Zambia.

    The initiative, which is in partnership with the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), has “Transforming Africa’s Humanitarian Architecture” as its theme.

    At the launch, Mr Abdon Mawere, the Zambian Commissioner for Refugees, Ministry of Home Affairs, said the three-day training aimed to address the specific needs and situation of forced displacements in Africa, while maintaining the fundamental principles of international law.

    He said the need for the training was initiated in 2016 by the UNHCR as a key component of AU”s 10-year Plan of Action on humanitarian effectiveness (2016 to 2026).

    He said Africa was facing an increased challenge of forced human displacement from conflicts and natural disasters which had taken heavy toll on human lives and development.

    “So, there is the need to meet and share experiences to know how best to tackle the problem holistically.”

    He also said that Zambia had a long history of taking care of refugees, saying that in 2016, the country had 200,000 refugees from Angola, Mozambique and DR Congo.

    In an opening remark, Lamine Baali, the Ambassador, Saharawi Arab Republic, recalled the instruments and conventions of the AU.

    These include the 1969 OAU Convention Governing Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, the Kampala Convention on Internally Displaced Persons and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to tackle humanitarian problem.

    Baali, who is also the Chair, Partner Representative Committee on Refugees, noted that in spite of the conventions and instruments, the humanitarian problem in Africa was huge and could get worst if unchecked.

    He said the training initiative was therefore to sensitise AU member states and policy implementers to the need for proactive measures to tackle the situation.

    Mr Chanda Cosmos, the UNHCR Representative to AU and Economic Commission for Africa, said the training was to take a closer look at available instruments for African countries to manage migration, forced displacement and Internally Displaced Persons.

    Earlier, Mr Olabisi Dare, the Director, AU Department of Political Affairs, said the union recently adopted a new humanitarian architecture, contained in the  union’s Humanitarian Policy Framework and the Common African Position as blueprint on humanitarian effectiveness in Africa.

    He said the new approach was to move away from norm setting to implementation, emphasising that the African Peace and Security Architecture was basically for warning signs to conflicts and natural disasters so as to mitigate a problem even before it happened.

    He recalled the recent election impasse in The Gambia, where the architecture was positively used to nip an imminent crisis in that country in the bud.

    He reiterated the new AU approach for implementation, saying states should be encouraged to be responsive to humanitarian problems in their areas and to offer solutions to negative occurrences even before they happened.

    “Africans cannot continue to leave the tap open and assume to mop after the flood.

    “We cannot continue to watch things happen and begin to respond afterwards. We should be able to mitigate even before negative things happen,” he said.

    Dare also said that the training was intended to deepen existing understanding of AU instruments on humanitarian problems and to encourage their ratification, domestication and implementation and contribute to effective protection and assistance of forcibly displaced populations.

    The training, which will close on Friday, has as participants AU officials, officials of UNHCR, partners in handling humanitarian situations, foreign affairs ministry officials, ECOWAS and journalists.

  • Eradicating Statelessness: UNHCR Rep lauds ECOWAS as global pacesetter

    Mrs Liz Ahua, the Regional Representative, UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), has described ECOWAS as a global pacesetter for its progress towards eradicating statelessness in the West Africa sub-region.

    Ahua said on Sunday in Banjul at the opening of a three-day ministerial meeting on the adoption of the Regional Plan of Action to Eradicate Statelessness in West Africa.

    She noted that since the adoption of the Abidjan Declaration in February 2015, ECOWAS member states had made significant commitments and progress which could not be over-emphasised in the drive to combat statelessness in sub-region.

    “The progress made since Abidjan has been significant and it is without hesitation that I can say this region is setting an example, not only for the continent, but for the world.

    “Three member states have newly acceded to the 1954 and 1961 international statelessness conventions; 12 member states have developed National Action Plans to end Statelessnes.

    “Three officially adopted the declaration, including one at presidential level.

    “Reforms of national legislation are under way in seven countries.’’

    Ahua said that notwithstanding the progress and success made so far, a lot more needed to be done to achieve the UN global target of eradicating statelessness by 2024.

    According to her, statistics have shown that while over one million persons are stateless in West Africa, 60 million people lack documentation proving their identity or nationality.

    Statelessness, she explained, had considerable cost in terms of human rights, security, socio-economic development, marginalization of communities and their exclusion from mainstream society.

    She said it was in consideration of these costs that the UNHCR and ECOWAS earlier organised a meeting of stakeholders and experts to work together on the next critical step in the fight to eradicate statelessness in West Africa.

    Also speaking, Dr Fatimata Dia Sow, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Social Affairs and Gender, said that eradicating Statelessness was in tandem with one of the ECOWAS visions to foster regional integration.

    Dia Sow said that since the Adoption of the Abidjan Declaration, ECOWAS, with the support of UNHCR, had focused on addressing the root causes of statelessness and had defined the way forward toward eradicating it.

    She noted that millions of stateless persons across the world had been denied their fundamental human rights for several reasons, including gaps in nationality laws, administrative practices and unwritten discriminatory laws.

    “Today, we are here to take concrete actions against these wrongs by validating this Regional Plan of action in order to achieve the target of the declaration in eradicating statelessness by 2024.

    “The Regional Plan of Action for Validation entails six strategic support measures that ECOWAS and UNHCR can provide to member states.

    “It Includes measures that ECOWAS will adopt to follow up on the commitments made by member states in the Abidjan Declaration and it spells out mechanisms for monitoring and implementation,’’ she said.

    In his remark, Mr Mai Fatty, the Gambian Minister of Interior, noted that statelessness is a collective problem in West Africa that required collective commitments and solution from member states.

    Fatty said that the government of the Gambia was resolutely engaged in the fight against statelessness in the country and had adopted a National Action Plan to end the problem.

    According to him, a West Africa without statelessness, will be stronger and more stable.

  • 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.