Congolese refugee relocation set for Monday

NYAMAGABE – Refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are scheduled to be moved from the Rubavu-based Nkamira Transit Centre to the new Kigeme Camp in Nyamagabe.This was confirmed to The New Times by the Minister of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs (MIDIMAR), Gen. Marcel Gatsinzi.According to the minister, the construction of Kigeme Camp, which will cover about 22 hectares, started on Monday and is set to be completed in seven days.The refugees who hit the 10,000 mark over the past month, are fleeing fighting in eastern DRC. The first group will be relocated to Kigeme by Monday. The exact cost of the construction and the relocation exercise, expected to be met by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), is yet to be established but it is estimated to be in billions of francs. The money will be used to set up facilities such as houses, water, electricity and health amenities, transport and other requirements to ensure the safety of the refugees.According to UNHR officials, construction activities will start with the setting up of temporary tents to accommodate the refugees – which will be later replaced by more permanent structures in the near future.The camp formerly sheltered Burundian refugees who had fled their country due to insurgencies, and have since returned home.The now over-stretched Nkamira Transit Camp was initially supposed to accommodate 2,600 refugees, but over the last few weeks, the influx has seen it playing host to about 10,800, as per Sunday night, according to UNHCR figures.However, the number is persistently increasing, with approximately 200 individuals on average crossing the border into Rwanda every day.“Nkamira camp is currently overcrowded, which has affected the refugees in various ways. By setting up this camp, the government wants to ensure the security and safety of the refugees,” Gatsinzi said.“We are working around the clock to make sure the camp is completed on time so that by Sunday or Monday we start receiving refugees here.”ClashesIn late April, fighting erupted in the DRC’s volatile eastern province of North Kivu between soldiers loyal to the government and mutinous soldiers. The mutineers, mainly former rebels who were integrated into the army under a 2009 peace deal, have since formed a group known as the March 23 Movement (M23).The renewed clashes have pushed tens of thousands of Congolese nationals to cross the border into Rwanda and Uganda. Others live in internally displaced persons’ camps inside their country.The latest influx adds to the already existing 50,000 Congolese refugees who have been in Rwanda for over 15 years having fled insurgencies in the same region.Insecurity in this part of the region has mainly been attributed to the continued existence of so many rebel groups, including the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).Since the outbreak of the renewed clashes, the Government of Rwanda has hosted a string of high-level diplomatic and military meetings, involving Congolese officials, in an effort to help find a peaceful solution to the crisis.

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Congolese refugee relocation set for Monday