United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres has said the agency will launch a number of projects on education, healthcare, agriculture and safety to support refugees and hosting communities in Mozambique, AIM reported on Thursday.
Guterres was speaking to reporters shortly after the end on an audience with the Mozambican President Armando Guebuza in Maputo on Wednesday.
According to the United Nations envoy, strategies targeted at the refugees should never exclude the hosting communities.
These programs must also include the hosting communities to allow them take advantages with refugees' integration within their communities, stressed Guterres.
To that end, Guterres said the UNHCR is actively working with the Mozambican Institute for Support to Refugees (INAR) to identify those who are the true refugees.
In essence, this initiative envisages to protect effectively those who are living in Mozambique under the refugee status, but also to prevent its abuse.
Guterres expressed his gratitude and satisfaction with the exemplary generosity and solidarity shown by both Mozambican government and its people towards the asylum seekers.
Guterres, who completed Thursday his four day official visit to Mozambique, visited the Maratane Refugee Center in the northern province of Nampula, currently sheltering a number of refugees most of whom were from the Great Lakes region.
The purpose of Guterres visit was to learn first hand information of the situation of the refugees in the country and exchange viewpoints with the government on this issue.
Statistics show that Mozambique is hosting 7,034 refugees and asylum-seekers, of whom 5,148 are in the Maratane Refugee Center, which is the biggest in the country.
Source: Xinhua
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