BY EYUEL KIFLU
A region of contradiction is a byword for the Horn of Africa. The region is with a rich histories and diverse cultures. Equally true, it has also been known for its recurrent conflict, humanitarian crises, and burgeoning refugee crisis. In recent years, the region has been shaped by the movement of people, particularly those seeking refuge, fleeing conflict and unrest.
While migration can bring economic opportunities and cultural exchanges, it often exposes migrants to serious risks, including discrimination, abuse, exploitation, and limited access to essential services such as healthcare and education. Many migrants are forced to flee conflict, persecution, poverty, or climate change-related disasters and are often in need of humanitarian assistance. Despite efforts by governments and humanitarian organizations to protect and assist migrants, the situation remains complex and challenging in the region.
Evidence shows that the major destinations of migrants are the European continent on the northern route. And they are using unstable Libya to reach their final destinations. Also, South Africa is the other destination on the southern route, especially for young Ethiopians, Eritreans, and Somalis. In addition, millions of refugees displaced from their homelands have been stranded in the region facing dire humanitarian situations. For instance, Ethiopia currently hosts over a million refugees from neighboring countries and beyond. The country has been serving as a safe haven for many improvised refugees.
Refugees from different nations have been flocking to Ethiopia mainly because of the hospitality of the Ethiopian people and the refugee-friendly policy of the country. In addition to giving sanctuary to citizens of neighboring countries, the country is also sheltering Syrian and Yemeni refugees. Like Ethiopia, countries in the region also host refugees from the countries. The crisis has worsened lately due to the renewed fighting in Sudan.
Thousands of Sudanese and other nationals have fled the country in fear of the ongoing war. One of the destinations and transit points for migrants has been Ethiopia. A lot of refugees from Sudan have been evacuated through Ethiopia. Also, the Ethiopian government has expressed its readiness to take care of the refugees. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), in response to requests from 50 different nations following the continued war, the country has been processing the evacuation of nationals from Sudan.
The readiness of the Ethiopian government to evacuate strained people from Sudan was lauded by the UN. The UN secretary-general’s special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Hanna Serwaa Tettech said that one of the nations that some foreign actors are using to try to evacuate their staff from Sudan is Ethiopia. Also, she appreciated the Ethiopian government for facilitating such things as Bahir Dar and Gondar Airports for the evacuation of civilians and the welcoming state for refugees.
She stressed that the international community should be supportive of Ethiopia’s efforts to facilitate the evacuation process due to its cost. And in order to support Ethiopia’s endeavor, the UN will reallocate some of its resources and cooperate with the Ethiopian government as requested.
Similarly, the Ministry has emphasized that it requires logistics, intergovernmental coordination, and mobilization for immigrants to put up checkpoints in migrant reception zones. As a result, there has been a significant mobilization of Sudanese refugees, adding to Ethiopia’s burden, which the international government should assist with. Ethiopia wants the international community to realize how serious this situation is. The country also received official evacuation requests from 50 different nations and responded to them appropriately.
So, this good step by Ethiopia for migration in the region is not veiled, and many countries and international organizations applaud and praise the Ethiopian government for what it is doing in migration policy. Lately, the USA, China, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and others have expressed their gratitude to the Ethiopian government.
Meanwhile, IOM and the European Union (EU) have hailed Ethiopia’s migrant-friendly policies as the five-year EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration in the Horn of Africa came to a conclusion. The Joint Initiative brought together 26 African countries of the Sahel and Lake Chad, the whole of Africa, and North Africa. The initiative facilitates safe, orderly, and regular migration by strengthening the migration evidence mechanism to ensure dignified returns and sustainable reintegration of returning migrants.
In East and Horn of Africa, the EU Joint Initiative was primarily implemented in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan, under the coordination of the IOM Regional Office for East and Horn of Africa. The Joint Initiative program in Ethiopia targeted migrants stranded in transit and destination countries along the eastern, northern, and southern migration routes. The main reason that motivates immigrants to migrate is the idea of ensuring economic security, as well as peer pressure and the influence of human traffickers.
Many young Ethiopian migrants migrate in search of better economic opportunities. They migrate to different destinations through different routes. Some travel through the eastern route to reach the Middle East, some travel through the southern route to reach South Africa, and some travel through the northern route to reach Europe, said Kidist Mulugeta, IOM National Program Officer in an exclusive interview with The Ethiopian Herald.
Preparing the legal framework for the protection of migrants has been a priority for the government of Ethiopia. Also, providing protection and support for migrant returnees has been a top priority too. She added that the incumbent has also enacted different laws and policies to provide protection and support for migrant returnees.
Ethiopia has a proclamation on anti-human trafficking and is now in the process of developing a migration policy. The government has also enacted different directives to support migrant returnees. “We have the reintegration directive. And then in 2016, the labor migration proclamation enacted by the government of Ethiopia is also another important legal framework for the overall protection of migrants.”
With the initiative, countries have been provided with capacity-building in policy development, the development of directives, and standard operating procedures for supporting migrant returnees, as well as addressing the issue of human trafficking. Through the initiative, relevant institutions have been offered with capacity-building assistance which includes training, material support, standardizing the return process, and reintegration assistance for migrant returnees.
The support has been very comprehensive in addressing the overall trafficking issues. She explained that it also had a program for trafficking prevention, specifically awareness-raising and outreach activities. It was learned that direct support had been provided for vulnerable migrants who had been affected by trafficking.
“The three main objectives achieved through this program in Ethiopia are: developing and strengthening evidence-based legal and reintegration procedures; enhancing safe, humane, dignified, voluntary processes for funeral migrants stranded along the three migration routes; promoting migrant rights; and ensuring the benefits of sustainable economic, social, and psychosocial reintegration that also benefit communities,” said Abibatou Wane, Chief of Mission IOM Ethiopia.
“In this particular case, the program would not have been successful without the strong engagement and commitment of the government at the federal and regional levels,” she added. In the closing ceremony of the five-year initiative held in Addis Ababa, the start of a new program known as Protection, Return, and Reintegration was announced.
The geographic focus of the new program is on the north-side migration route and it will involve capacity development and community-based initiatives, which are instrumental to an integrated approach to reintegration, a model followed by the EU-trained initiatives in the last five years.
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD THURSDAY 4 MAY 2023
