NORTHERN PROVINCE

GATUNA — A senior official from Nakivale refugee settlement camp in western Uganda has blamed bureaucracy for the slow pace of repatriation of Rwandans back home. 

In an interview with The New Times on Thursday, Festo Wafuta, a senior officer at the camp said: "A lot of time is spent on making refugee manifests, which are communicated to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Rwanda and the National Council for Refugees before the Refugees are repatriated. This in turn negatively impacts on the rate of undertaking repatriation .”

Wafuta had accompanied 155 Rwandan returnees, who were repatriated on Thursday through Gatuna border.

The group comprising of 58 children, 56 men and 41 women arrived at Gatuna border post at 3.p.m aboard two buses and one truck, carrying their luggage.

"It is important that more time be given to repatriation per se. The screening and documentation of returnees’ exercise can follow later,” Wafuta asserted.

Like the previous groups, the latest group was received at the border by UNHCR, National Council for Refugees and Gicumbi District officials before being transported to Rukomo returnees’ transit camp, about 30 km from Gatuna.

Francoise Uwanyirigira an officer  of the National Council for Refugees added that the returnees will be given food rations to last for three months and other household necessities to enable them reintegrate in the Rwandan society.

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