Mekelle — The Tigray Interim Administration has urged Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and United Nations agencies to scale up humanitarian assistance and support durable solutions for displaced persons, while reaffirming its commitment to ensuring the safe return of internally displaced people (IDPs) and upholding the territorial integrity of Tigray.
The call was made during separate discussions held 15 and 16 October 2025 by the Interim Administration president and vice president with CRS and UN agencies delegations.
Lt. Gen. Tadesse Worede, President of the Tigray Interim Administration, urged CRS to expand its emergency assistance for vulnerable communities across Tigray and for refugees who have fled to Sudan. He made the call during a meeting in Mekelle with a CRS delegation led by President and CEO Sean Callahan, accompanied by East and Southern Africa Regional Director Matthew David and Ethiopia Country Director Zemede Zewde.
According to the Office of the President, the discussions focused on ongoing humanitarian operations and efforts to support displaced people affected by the two-year conflict and the subsequent drought. President Tadesse commended CRS for its "major support" in life-saving food assistance, food security programs, school reconstruction, and access to clean drinking water. He also recognized the organization's collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in reaching communities facing grave hardship.
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He noted that the Tigray Interim Administration is working with the federal government to ensure the safety and well-being of displaced populations, while urging humanitarian partners to expand their support both for internally displaced persons (IDPs) within Tigray and for those sheltering in Sudan. CRS representatives reaffirmed the organization's commitment to continue providing humanitarian and recovery assistance in the region.
In a related discussion, Tigray Interim Administration Vice President Amanuel Assefa emphasized that ensuring the safe return of displaced persons and safeguarding Tigray's territorial integrity remain top priorities for the administration.
"The safe return of displaced persons to their homes and the assurance of Tigray's territorial integrity are priority tasks," Amanuel said, calling on international organizations to provide all possible support to guarantee the full and uncompromised implementation of the Pretoria Agreement.
He added that the interim administration will continue to strengthen efforts to facilitate the voluntary and dignified return of displaced people and to enable humanitarian agencies to resume and expand their operations across the region.
Representatives from the World Food Programme (WFP), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and other international organizations held discussions with Tigray's leadership on enhancing coordination and identifying durable solutions for IDPs and returnees. They also expressed their readiness to support ongoing rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts in Tigray.
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According to a recent report by the Global Protection Cluster, a total of 12,155 internally displaced households, comprising 62,707 individuals, have returned to their areas of origin across six woredas -- Irob, Gulomekada, Zala Anbassa, Egela, Central Adiyabo, and Tahtay Adiyabo.
In its September 2025 Ethiopia Monthly Protection Overview, the Cluster described the trend as part of an ongoing self-organized return movement of internally displaced persons (IDPs).
In contrast, the report also noted that during the same period, 38 households (229 individuals) arrived at Sheraro IDP camps from the Western Zone, citing continuing threats and political instability in their areas of origin.
