African Presidents to meet over refugees

The African Union Special Summit scheduled to take place in Kampala ,Uganda, is expected to come up with clear measures of addressing issues related to refugees, returnees, and internally displaced people. The summit, according to the Rwandan Minister of Local Government, Christopher Bazivamo, is aimed at pursuing durable solutions to the root causes and problems faced by displaced people in Africa. Current statistics indicates that Africa has over 17 million internally displaced persons and refugees. The theme of the Summit is, ‘Africa Union addressing the challenges of Forced Displacement in Africa’“Presidents will be reaffirming their commitment to the basic principles of protecting, assisting and finding durable solutions for victims of forced displacement,” said Bazivamo. He said Rwanda has achieved tremendous progress in several sectors of development which implies that the country does not recognize any Rwandan claiming to be a refugee. “During the Kampala meeting, Heads of States are expected to take decisions that will help the continent progressively eliminate the phenomenon of large scale forced displacement of populations caused by human-induced conflicts and natural disasters” said Bazivamo. During the Special Summit, Presidents are also expected to sign the ‘African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa’Other issues expected to be tabled at the summit include devising strategies to reduce the impact of natural disasters on displacement of people, finding solutions of their problems, and enabling the rebuilding of communities emerging from conflict. Ends

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African Presidents to meet over refugees