Sarah Mcgregor
7 December 2007
Dar Es Salaam — Tens of thousands of Burundian refugees staying in Tanzania returned home this year; however, the Tanzanian government will miss its target to empty all camps by mid-2008, the United Nations said Friday.
Authorities had indicated they wanted to pick up the pace, and set a deadline for voluntary repatriation for the end of this year -- or Jun. 30, 2008 at the very latest.
"But they also want to ensure that the return is done responsibly," Yacoub El Hillo, the representative in Tanzania of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told a press conference in the financial capital of Dar es Salaam -- noting that government had no intention of expelling refugees at present.
The process of voluntary repatriation will continue through 2008, he added.
"We believe we will end up with a small, resilient and manageable group" in a single camp by the end of 2008, El Hillo said.
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete has asked Burundians who fled a 13 year war that killed 300,000 people in their country to return home of their own free will because there is now peace in the Central African state.
He says repatriation will help Burundi rebuild its shattered economy and reduce the burden on his impoverished nation, where citizens and authorities tend to blame refugees for a number of ills.
However, an October 2007 survey by the Tanzanian chapter of the Southern African Human Rights NGO Network (SAHRINGON) reveals that perceptions about the many refugees living in Tanzania are often false.
They are frequently held responsible for increasing crime rates, contributing to environmental degradation, burdening health and education services, and slowing national economic development, the report says.
Yet, their presence has resulted in substantial U.N. aid which, notes SAHRINGON, has made the country better off.
The UNHCR spent 28.7 million dollars on refugee assistance in 2007 alone thanks to funding from the European Commission, the United States, Denmark, Japan, Belgium, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
Since 1995, it has invested in hospitals, wells to supply clean drinking water, schools and roads in and around camps where refugees have congregated.
Tanzanian citizens surrounding the fenced-in camps are welcome to use some of the services inside them. The United Nations said it also plans to pass off its infrastructure to the government, and ensure assistance continues to be delivered through U.N. agencies or non-governmental organisations in regions where the camps are shut down.
Tens of thousands remain
About 117,000 Burundian refugees remain in three U.N.-run camps in Tanzania's north-west region bordering Burundi.
Since the start of 2007, about 38,000 refugees have opted to go back to Burundi of their own accord, while another 5,800 were resettled in the United States, Australia, Canada, Norway, the Netherlands and Finland.
The introduction in July of a 50 dollar cash incentive and six month food package for every refugee that leaves Tanzania, as well as political pressure, has sparked this year's exodus.
El Hillo said the next challenge is to ensure Burundi combines the right blend of domestic policies and international aid to boost growth for its citizens. "The reasons that forced them to flee in 1993 largely have been addressed."
Burundi's population of 7.5 million is one of world's poorest, with a per capita income of just 90 dollars. Agriculture, mainly coffee exports, drives the economy.
Tanzania also hosts 98,000 refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo in two north-western camps, while 1,300 Somali refugees stay in the country's east.
In addition, about 218,000 Burundians who arrived in Tanzania in 1972 have refugee status, but have been considered self-sufficient since 1985.
These people, scattered in three settlements, are mainly producers of cash crops and make substantial contributions to Tanzania's economy, said El Hillo.
Next year, the United Nations and government of Tanzania plan to start a programme to help those amongst this specific group of Burundian refugees who wish to return home, and naturalise the others.
In total, Tanzania is home to half a million refugees, making it the second largest host country in Africa after Chad, said El Hillo.
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