UNHCR signs agreement aimed at ensuring refugee protection in Libya
UNHCR, as part of its work on mixed migration flows, signs an agreement aimed at ensuring refugee and asylum seeker protection needs in Libya.
TRIPOLI, Libya, July 4 (UNHCR) - The UN refugee agency has recently signed an agreement with three organizations aimed at ensuring the protection needs of refugees and asylum seekers in Libya. This is in line with UNHCR's responsibility to advocate for better protection of refugees in the context of mixed asylum and migration flows.
"This is certainly a good step forward," said UNHCR's top protection official, Erika Feller, who in June completed signing the Memorandum of Understanding with the International Organization for Peace, Care and Relief (IOPCR), the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) and the Italian Council for Refugees (CIR).
"Although refugees and migrants often use the same routes and means of transport they do have different protection needs. The increasing cooperation between UNHCR and Libya, and this agreement, is an acknowledgement of this situation and sets out practical ways of working together," said Feller.
The agreement is part of UNHCR's work under its Ten-Point Plan of Action on Refugee Protection and Mixed Migration, which sets out a number of areas where the agency believes initiatives are called for and where it can contribute some expertise in this challenging area.
UNHCR and the other three organizations which signed the agreement will support the Libyan authorities in designing and implementing comprehensive and protection-sensitive asylum management strategies with full respect for international and regional refugee and human rights principles.
They will particularly collaborate on capacity-building, data management, studies/surveys, and voluntary repatriation with the aim of enhancing protection for persons of concern to UNHCR in Libya.
There are currently some 9,000 refugees and asylum seekers in Libya - mainly Iraqis and Palestinians, and also Eritreans, Sudanese, Somalis, Liberians, Sierra Leoneans and Congolese from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In June, UNHCR said it was alarmed by credible reports that Egypt had forcibly returned Eritrean asylum seekers.
"We welcome the decision of the Libyan authorities not to deport Eritrean asylum seekers," said Radhouane Nouicer, chief of UNHCR's Middle East and North Africa bureau. "We are aware of the challenges in dealing with mixed flows of irregular immigrants and asylum seekers, and are appreciative of the Libyan government's efforts to address some of these issues in consultation with our office in Tripoli," he added.
Libya is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention. In the absence of a national asylum system, registration, documentation activities and refugee status determination procedures are carried out by UNHCR Libya.
Related news and stories
AU, EU and UN push for urgent action to address the pressing needs of migrants and refugees in Libya
Insecurity and COVID-19 fuel refugee mental health concerns in Libya
Repaired Benghazi home brings comfort after loss and displacement
Libya: Returning Home in Dignity
Refugee women scale Atlas mountain to tackle gender violence
Libya: First evacuation flight to Niger in over a year brings 172 asylum-seekers to safety
Your search for « iopcr » matched 27 results. Displaying page 3 of 3 pages.
-
47th Meeting of the Standing Committee: Regional Strategic Overview: Bureau for the Middle East and North Africa
22 Feb 2010 ... ... • In the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, through its partnership with the International Organization for Peace Care and Relief (IOPCR), UNHCR has been able to access several migrant detention centres. ...... -
The 10-Point Plan in action: Chapter 1/Annex 1.9. IOM Overview of Principal Regional Consultative Processes on Migration (RCPs)
15 Nov 2012 ... ... Peace, Care and Relief (IOPCR), League of Arab States, MARRI, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA). ...... -
10-Point Plan Expert Round Table No. 2, Tunis, 6-8 July 2009: "Different People, different needs": Summary Report
29 Sep 2009 ... ... implementing partner IOPCR (International Organization for Peace, Care and Relief) in Libya. ... Based on the information collected during the interview, IOPCR staff refers new arrivals to UNHCR or ...... -
Report on the Annual Consultations with NGOs 2006
1 Oct 2006 ... ... for Peace, Care and Relief Mr Khaled EL HAMEDI President of IOPCR Tripoli, Libyan Arab Jamahiriyria [email protected] www.iopcr.org International Organization for Peace, Care and Relief Mr Jamal ...... -
Submission by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in the case of Hirsi and Others v. Italy
Mar 2011 ... ... (ICMPD), the Italian Refugee Council (CIR) and International Organization for Peace and Relief (IOPCR). 36 The extent of this vulnerability was underscored in a recent note verbale from the ...... -
Submission by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in the Case of Hirsi and Others v. Italy
29 Mar 2011 ... ... (ICMPD), the Italian Refugee Council (CIR) and International Organization for Peace and Relief (IOPCR). 7 been unpredictable, and the execution of its protection functions ad-hoc and unsystematic. 41 ...... -
The 10-Point Plan in action: Chapter 4/Annex 4.4. UNHCR's Operational role in southern Italy
15 Nov 2012 ... ... pursued a partnership-based approach to addressing mixed migration in Libya, and together with IOPCR, ICMPD and the Italian Refugee Council (CIR) has established a joint project for ...... -
Refugee protection and international migration: a review of UNHCR's operational role in southern Italy
Sep 2009 ... ... pursued a partnership-based approach to addressing mixed migration in Libya, and together with IOPCR, ICMPD and the Italian Refugee Council (CIR) has established a joint project for ...... -
The 10-Point Plan in action: Chapter 1/Annex 1.10. IOM Assessment of Principal Regional Consultative Processes on Migration
15 Nov 2012 ... ... Peace, Care and Relief (IOPCR), League of Arab States, MARRI, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA). ......