Ekip
16 June 2016•Update: 17 June 2016
By Magdalene Mukami
NAIROBI, Kenya
Kenya claims it has finally received backing from the United Nations on the closure of its Dadaab refugee camp and the repatriation of Somali refugees from the center.
Dadaab in northern Kenya is considered as one of the largest refugee camps in the world.
In remarks made to reporters in Brussels Thursday, Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Mohammed said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon held meetings with Kenyan leader Uhuru Kenyatta and agreed to help him in securing funds for the safe and humane repatriation of over 300,000 Somali refugees living in the refugee complex.
“It is now an internationally accepted fact that the closure of the Dadaab camp is going to be done and the refugees have said they are not opposed to it,” Mohammed was quoted by Kenya’s Daily nation as telling reporters at the Sheraton Brussels Hotel.
Mohammed added that Ban said that he understood Kenya’s decision to close the refugee complex.
Kenyatta reportedly told the UN chief: “There is an urgent need to ensure predictable, adequate and sustainable funding for the African Union Mission in Somalia [AMISOM] through UN-assessed contributions,” especially after the European Union’s announcement that it would reduce funds for the mission by 20 percent.
The repatriation of over 300,000 Somali refugees from the Dadaab refugee complex, which opened in 1990, will cost around $108.6 million, Mohammed said; so far donors have managed to raise only $7.1 million.
Kenyatta and Mohammed are currently in Brussels for a three-day visit, where they also attended the European Development Days.
