County News
14,000 Kenyans to be deregistered as refugees
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NAIROBI—The United Nations refugee agency plans to deregister an estimated 14,000 Kenyan nationals from its refugee database by the end of 2017.
The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) said the 14,000 individuals who are not eligible as refugees at the Dadaab refugee camp will have their details removed from the database.
The Kenyans were registered as refugees to benefit from free food rations and education at the camps during the drought of 1990s which mostly affected the North Eastern part of the country.
The agency further noted that it will support the government to issue or renew national identity cards to Kenyans who will be deregistered from the refugee database.
“UNHCR and partners will support the relocation and reintegration of some 14,000 Kenyan nationals who have registered as refugees in Dadaab,” said UNHCR in its supplementary appeal report.
The verification process and the subsequent de-registration of Kenyans registered as refugees began weeks after the Kenya government announced plans to close down Dadaab, the largest refugee camp in May 2016.
The refugee agency also said it had repatriated 72,063 Somali refugees from Dadaab to Somalia since the launch of the voluntary repatriation programme begin in December 2014.
“The cumulative total number of persons repatriated from Kenya to Somalia currently stands at 72, 063,” it said. The UNHCR noted that while some 29,383 refugees returned in 2017 alone, 18,274 others are currently registered and willing to return to Somalia adding that the number of those voluntary willing to return to Somalia reduced during the election period.
“During the election, the Return Help Desks (RHDs) have recorded reduced number of refugees willing to return. Arrangement has been put in place during the election period to ensure continuation of voluntary return by air without stoppage,” UNHCR said in its bi-weekly update.
Currently there about 288, 489 Somali refugees in Kenya spread across Dagahaley, Ifo, Ifo 2 and Hagadera camps,
