Swaziland

2012 Regional Operations Profile - Southern Africa

Working environment

At the end of 2010, there were some 340,000 persons of concern to UNHCR in Southern Africa, including approximately 146,000 refugees, 193,000 asylum-seekers and 700 returnees.

Mixed migratory movements towards Southern Africa from the Great Lakes Region and the Horn of Africa continue to pose a significant challenge. Established refugee camps in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe are being used as temporary stopovers by those seeking to move towards South Africa, putting a strain on scarce humanitarian resources and creating tensions within the camps.

Perceptions of economic opportunity attract refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants alike, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation. Many Governments in the region are restricting access through their official border entry points. A conference on mixed migration was held in Dar Es Salaam in September 2010, resulting in a plan of action that seeks to address these mixed movements. The implementation of the plan, initiated in 2011, will continue in 2012.

With the exception of Angola and South Africa, countries hosting a significant number of refugees maintain encampment policies that restrict the freedom of movement of refugees and asylum-seekers and impede the efforts of the displaced to achieve self-reliance. The second, and sometimes even third generation of refugees have difficulty envisioning a better future, and are frustrated by the lack of economic and educational prospects.

Foreign nationals are often seen as competitors for scarce economic opportunities, fuelling xenophobia and leading to a general reduction of support for asylum in Southern Africa.

Strategy in 2012

UNHCR will work with relevant stakeholders to develop protection-sensitive regional and national asylum and migration policies and practices. The aim is to address the growing phenomenon of mixed migratory flows towards Southern Africa, as agreed under the 2010 mixed migration action plan adopted at the Dar Es Salaam Conference.

UNHCR will continue to advocate for countries in the region to lift their reservations to the 1951 Refugee Convention that restrict freedom of movement and access to education and employment. The goal is to improve the quality of asylum and the prospects for self-reliance. UNHCR will also advocate for accession to and ratification of the conventions on statelessness and internally displaced persons (IDPs). In addition, it will promote the development of national frameworks that adhere to international protection standards and the creation of sustainable registration and documentation systems. Efforts to find durable solutions for refugees will be doubled, and focus on strengthening local integration, the strategic use of resettlement and voluntary repatriation.

Furthermore, UNHCR will reach out to host communities through radio in local languages with a message of tolerance and coexistence combined with information about why refugees are present in the local communities and how they contribute to society. It will also undertake conflict-resolution programmes and other community interventions, as well as advocacy to prevent and respond to xenophobia.

Zimbabwe is currently the only country in the sub-region with internally displaced persons (IDPs), albeit of an unknown number. UNHCR's efforts to support the coordinated response to IDPs will include providing leadership on protection, shelter and camp management and also ensuring that contingency plans are in place.

Initiatives to address and prevent statelessness will continue, particularly in Mozambique and Zimbabwe, where both governments have shown a positive response to these issues.

Constraints

Economic constraints faced by governments in the region limit the amount of resources available for refugee protection. Local communities continue to see foreigners, including refugees and asylum-seekers, as competitors for employment and services.

The increasing visibility of mixed migration movements and the subsequent blurring of the distinction between refugees and economic migrants hamper UNHCR's efforts to expand self-reliance and promote local integration as a durable solution.

Although countries in the region have ratified the international refugee instruments, they often maintain reservations with regard to the promotion of socio-economic rights. National refugee policies maintain encampment policies which limit freedom of movement and the right to work, making it extremely difficult to promote local integration as a durable solution.

Operations

UNHCR's programmes in South Africa and Zambia are presented in separate country chapters.

More than 20,000 refugees and asylum-seekers reside in Angola. This figure includes nearly 12,000 refugees from the Katanga province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) who have been in the country since the late 1970s, as well as refugees from other countries such as Chad, Mauritania, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia and Sudan. UNHCR will continue to promote protection-oriented policies and standards for the admission of asylum-seekers, including those who arrive within broader migration flows.

UNHCR is working with the Angolan Government to strengthen national refugee legislation and help absorb the refugee status determination (RSD) backlog by increasing capacity. It will advocate for durable solutions, including facilitating or promoting voluntary repatriation, to Burundi, Rwanda and the western DRC, as well as seek opportunities for local integration, particularly for the Congolese who have been in the country for more than 40 years. As most of the refugees live in urban areas, UNHCR will provide shelter and support income-generating activities appropriate to their situation.

With expectations that the cessation clause will be applied to Angolan refugees at the end of 2011, UNHCR projects an increase in the number of those returning home in 2012. The Government will play the lead role, with UNHCR monitoring protection and encouraging other stakeholders to incorporate the development needs of the new returnees into their planning. The Government will also be assisted to issue documentation, provide non-food items, help returnees with specific needs and to conduct Portuguese-language training.

The approximately 3,500 refugees and asylum-seekers in Botswana originate from Angola, Namibia, Somalia, Zimbabwe, and the Great Lakes Region. Botswana's strict encampment policy has led to increasing numbers of refugees living in Dukwi camp, putting a strain on the services available. Domestic items and shelter need to be replaced, and water and sanitation services improved.

UNHCR will continue to ensure that basic services are provided at acceptable standards, while advocating for the lifting of the reservation on freedom of movement. It will support a revision of the national asylum law while pursuing durable solutions for the refugees in Botswana. Local integration will be promoted, especially for Angolans who have been in the country for many years and are integrated into the community. Resettlement will be used strategically as a protection tool for the most vulnerable refugees. Voluntary repatriation to Angola, Burundi, Namibia and Rwanda will be actively promoted.

A small number of refugees and asylum-seekers in the Indian Ocean island States of Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles will receive assistance from UNDP under a Memorandum of Understanding with UNHCR. The well-being of persons of concern will be assessed through regular UNHCR monitoring visits. In Madagascar, UNHCR is working with the Government to identify and develop a strategy that will address the emerging issue of statelessness.

In Lesotho, there are some 60 refugees who are largely self-reliant. UNHCR continues to advocate for the Kingdom of Lesotho to grant citizenship unconditionally to these refugees, who have been in the country for five years or more, in accordance with the national refugee law.

Malawi currently hosts some 12,800 refugees and asylum-seekers, mainly from Burundi, the DRC and Rwanda. New national refugee legislation is expected in 2012, enabling refugees to benefit from freedom of movement and opportunities for self-reliance, as the new law will allow them to operate businesses. UNHCR will continue to focus on the rights of women and girls in the Dzaleka Refugee Camp, and work towards a reduction in the number of cases of sexual and gender-based violence. It will also aim for solutions using resettlement and promoting voluntary repatriation to Burundi and Rwanda.

Malawi remains a significant transit country for mixed migration from the Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes Region, despite stricter measures adopted by the Government. UNHCR will work with the Government of Malawi to implement the recommendations of the 2010 conference on mixed migration.

Of the nearly 10,000 refugees and asylum-seekers in Mozambique, just over half live in Maratane, the only refugee camp in the country. The remainder live in various urban centres. The majority of the refugees originate from the DRC, Rwanda and Burundi. The Government has provided agricultural land and allowed the refugees freedom of movement and the right to work, enabling UNHCR to provide refugees with support in these areas. In 2012, these programmes will be expanded in an effort to make the refugees more self-reliant.

Since 2010, more than 10,000 asylum-seekers and economic migrants have travelled through Mozambique on their way to South Africa. As the Government is looking at tightening its borders, UNHCR is working closely with it and other partners to implement the recommendations arising from the conference on mixed migration. Negotiations are underway to establish a transit centre in Cabo Delgado Province, where proper screening of migrants can take place, and from where asylum-seekers could be transferred to Maratane Camp in Nampula Province.

UNHCR will provide technical support to the Government on its draft nationality act to reduce the risk of statelessness. It is also providing technical advice on the registration of potentially stateless persons among Mozambicans residing in neighbouring countries and Kenya.

Namibia hosts some 8,700 refugees and asylum-seekers, mainly from Angola and the DRC. More than 7,400 live in Osire refugee settlement. UNHCR will continue to advocate for local integration as the most appropriate solution for the Angolan refugees who have been in the country for nearly 20 years, as well as voluntary repatriation. RSD, health and education services for the refugees have been integrated into the work of government line ministries. UNHCR will provide technical support and assistance to ensure that protection and assistance meet international standards.

UNHCR covers Swaziland from the Regional Office in Pretoria. The majority of the nearly 800 refugees in this country are locally integrated and live in urban areas. They originate from Burundi, the DRC, Rwanda, Somalia and Zimbabwe. Education, health and other services are provided through CARITAS as implementing partner.

Zimbabwe shelters just over 5,000 refugees and asylum-seekers in Tongogara Camp. The majority of them come from the Great Lakes region. Zimbabwe has been affected by the stricter border policies implemented by neighbouring countries towards mixed migratory movements. Many asylum-seekers are brought to the camp, yet do not stay and move on towards South Africa at the first opportunity.

UNHCR will continue to ensure that services provided in the camp meet minimum standards. Durable solutions, including the strategic use of resettlement, promotion of voluntary repatriation and advocacy for local integration will be pursued. UNHCR will also work with the Government of Zimbabwe to implement the action plan following from the conference on mixed migration.

It is estimated that the number of IDPs in Zimbabwe ranges from 80,000 to 1 million. UNHCR leads the protection cluster on IDPs and works jointly with the Government and partners on a strategy designed to balance an effective humanitarian response and the search for durable solutions. This includes advocating for civil-status documentation and supporting community-based livelihood initiatives. UNHCR will also work to promote the incorporation into national law of the 2009 Kampala Convention for the Protection and Assistance of IDPs in Africa.

The numbers of persons who are stateless or at risk of becoming so is not clear, but could well be substantial, given the history of migrant farm workers coming to Zimbabwe for work from Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique. UNHCR will give priority to advocating for the provision of civil-status documentation to help individuals at risk of statelessness.

Financial information

The total comprehensive budget for the sub-region has been growing steadily from USD 49.7 million in 2008 to USD 90.5 million in 2011. The biggest increase was in 2010, when the budget went up by 42 per cent from USD 52.8 million in 2009 to USD 74.9 million. This was a reflection of the significant needs created by increase in numbers of asylum seekers, especially in South Africa. The budget for 2012 and 2013 has risen to USD 89 million to respond to new needs in the area of local integration, especially in Zambia, where over 10,000 Angolan refugees may be locally integrated once the Government has given its go- ahead.

Source: UNHCR Global Appeal 2012-2013