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Monday, April 22, 2002 - Web posted at 9:14:31 pm GMT

THE office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva has confirmed a donation made by the production team of the international feature film 'Beyond Borders' to Namibia's Osire refugee camp.

The donation to the refugee camp included 13,5 tons of food supplies such as corn meal, wheat, sugar, salt and beans as well as bedding and tents.

The tents comprised 15 army marquee tents, 125 bell tents and 130 cottage tents and the bedding consisting of 800 reed mats, 500 blankets and 70 foam mattresses.

The items were due to be delivered to the camp at the weekend.

The UNHCR's Shannon Boyd told The Namibian that when award-winning actress Angelina Jolie visited the camp on March 23, she handed out hundreds of volleyballs, basketballs, footballs, nets and other sporting equipment for the refugees.

This was in addition to a "generous personal contribution" she made for projects benefiting the refugees at Osire. The exact amount is being kept confidential at Jolie's request, but Boyd said it was "really generous".

Unconfirmed indications are that the donation was a couple of hundred thousand Namibian dollars.

As an UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, Jolie donated U$1 million to the 3,5 million Afghan refugees in Pakistan and Iran last year.

She became a UN ambassador in August last year and has since met with refugees in Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Pakistan and Cambodia.

Boyd told The Namibian that Jolie's role as Goodwill Ambassador and the active advocacy she has undertaken on behalf of refugees everywhere is of "inestimable value to us and most importantly to the refugees".

"She has become a key player in helping the office achieve its objectives of protecting refugees, assisting them and winning public support for the respect of refugees' human rights," Boyd said.

Jolie's personal journals recounting her missions to refugee camps can be found at www.usaforunhcr.com

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