A high-level ministerial validation workshop organized by Ethiopia’s Refugees and Returnees Service (RRS) to endorse the government’s final pledges for the 2023 Global Refugee Forum (GRF) kicked off in Bishoftu today.
Addressing the workshop, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Demeke Mekonnen stated that Ethiopia shelters one million refugees and asylum seekers.
As one of the world’s largest refugee host countries, the deputy premier highlighted Ethiopia’s outstanding commitment to welcoming refugees and asylum seekers as a duty of its international obligation.
According to him, Ethiopia is working to facilitate the integration of refugees into their host communities and national systems.
Refugees and Returnees Service Director-General, Teyba Hassen said on her part that Ethiopia has developed a progressive legal framework for refugees to enforce the international rights and protection of refugees.
The one-day workshop has validated and endorsed six pledges which will be announced at the upcoming Global Refugee Forum (GRF) in Geneva in December 2023.
The pledges include addressing the adverse impacts of climate change; transforming selected refugee camps into urban settlements; integrating refugees into existing national systems; creating enabling environments for more investment in refugee hosting regions; providing access to land and irrigation schemes; and enhancing digital connectivity to boost government’s capacity to provide registration and civil documentation.
Ministers, representatives from relevant federal institutions, UNHCR, IGAD and the GRF team took part in the workshop.
Source: Ethiopian News Agency