AU summit on refugees and IDPs

(PANA)--Uganda has said it is ready to host a special Africa Union (AU) summit aimed at eliminating the ever-worsening refugee and internally displaced persons (IDPs) crisis on the continent.

The summit, to be held under the theme ‘AU addressing the challenges of forced displaced in Africa’, is expected to culminate in a declaration that will tackle the root causes and problems of the continent’s 17 million IDPs and refugees. ‘The outcome of the summit will be an AU convention for the protection and assistance of internally displaced persons in Africa’, said Uganda’s refugees and disaster preparedness Minister, Tarsis Kabwegyere.

‘African leaders are expected to take decisions that will help the continent progressively eliminate the phenomenon of large scale displacements of populations caused by human-induced conflicts and natural disasters’, he said of the summit to be held 19-23 October 2009.

Meanwhile, Uganda authorities have acknowledged the receipt of $350,000 from the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, as contribution to the country’s efforts to host the summit that is expected to cost over $2 million. ‘Seventy per cent of the funds have been realised from contributions by the government, AU Commission and UNHCR’, Kabwegyere said. ‘The balance of 30 per cent is in form of pledges by other development partners. We hope all the required funds will be in by mid September’, he added.

<< Back to main