IOM Appeals for USD 2.55 Million for CAR Refugees in Neighbouring Countries
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 27, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- IOM has appealed for USD 2.55 million for operations in Cameroon and the Republic of the Congo through the end of 2015 under the inter-agency Refugee Response Plan for the Central African Republic (CAR).
IOM, which has focused on the plight of third country nationals affected by the crisis, is appealing for USD 800,000 for its work in Cameroon and USD 1.75 million for the Republic of the Congo. IOM operations to help refugees in Chad are not included in this appeal.
IOM Chief of Staff Ovais Sarmad, speaking at the launch of the appeal, emphasized the need for the international community to remain actively engaged and assist in the transition in CAR, where elections are planned for August 2015.
“Some crises become forgotten, or neglected by the media, and they disappear from the headlines,” Sarmad warned. “We need to prevent this.”
According to a new report released with the launch of the appeal, Cameroon has received over 135,000 new refugees from CAR since the December 2013 outbreak of violence. Eighty-seven per cent of the new arrivals are of Peuhl ethnicity.
The main difference between this group of refugees and those who arrived before 2013 is that there now is a higher proportion of refugees from urban areas – mainly Bangui, Berberati, Carnot, Nola and other cities.
In 2014, the Government of Cameroon allocated seven sites for refugees in the East and Adamawa regions in order to move the new arrivals away from insecure border areas. While over 59,000 new arrivals are now settled in the designated refugee sites, the remaining 63,000 new refugees are dispersed across 98 villages in the East, Adamawa and North regions.
Between 2004 and 2007, the influx of refugees caused comparatively few problems for peaceful coexistence. Any social tensions that arose between refugees and host communities came mainly over the scarcity of water and, to a lesser degree, education infrastructure.
The situation changed with the arrival of the new refugees, many of whom came with large herds of cattle, thereby increasing the competition for grazing sites and water. This increased a perception of insecurity among the local population.
Third country nationals, mainly Chadians, Nigerians, Senegalese and Malians, who fled to Cameroon from the CAR, are mostly accommodated in transit centres managed by IOM. While waiting for repatriation to their home countries, IOM's priorities include registration and protection issues, notably child protection and assisting victims of gender-based and other violence.