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Friday, October 25, 2002 - Web posted at 9:57:53 GMT UNHCR braces for cutbacks TANGENI AMUPADHITHE office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says it may have to shut down some of its African programmes at the end of this month due to a funding crisis. It is so far unclear how Namibia will be affected. |
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An announcement was made this week from the organisation's headquarters in Geneva, saying US$80 million (N$800 million) was needed to "maintain minimum standards for refugees". A UNHCR spokesperson in Geneva said on Wednesday it was too early to say what impact the financial crisis would have on programmes in Namibia because the budget cuts were only made last week. The head office has asked UNHCR offices to provide details about how they will trim their operations. Delphine Marie told The Namibian from Geneva that southern Africa is unlikely to experience major cuts because the region was "already running on a shoestring" budget. Namibia has a refugee population of more than 20 000, mainly from Angola, but also from other parts of Africa. "Our most pressing needs are in Africa right now, where we have numerous protracted refugee situations," said another UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond in a press statement. While the needs appear to be most urgent in Africa, other programmes, especially the Afghanistan refugee project, have received enough funding largely because they have higher profiles. To illustrate the seriousness of the funding crisis, Marie said the repatriation of Congolese refugees in Zambia had to be halted because of the cuts. Funding for UNHCR operations in Congo has already been reduced by N$10 million. The UN's refugee agency will issue appeals for money to pay for the repatriation of Angolan refugees, mainly scattered across southern Africa. The latest cuts are the second this year. In July, the UNHCR slashed US$96 million from its initial provision of US$802 million. Over the past two years 760 workers have been laid off, mainly from headquarters, but programmes aimed at improve the living standards of nearly 20 million refugees in the care of the UNHCR were also directly affected. Marie said budgets cuts would not touch what the UNHCR views as "survival programmes", which are aimed at keeping refugees fed and sheltered. "It's very, very worrying because over the past few years we have reduced [the budget] to the strictest minimum," she said. 'By contributing to the revenues of the elite networks, directly or indirectly, those companies and individuals contribute to the ongoing conflict and to human rights abuses.' - UN Report |
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