Refugees and Asylum seekers at Kigali International airport after arrival from Libya.
The 10th group of 103 refugees and asylum seekers evacuated from Libya have safely arrived yesterday in Rwanda. They will be accommodated in Gashora Transit Center located in Bugesera District that currently hosts 421 refugees and asylum seekers evacuated before.
The 10th group is composed of 68 Eritreans, 33 Sudanese, 1 South Sudanese and 1 Ethiopian. The Government of Rwanda, UNHCR and the African Union set up an emergency transit mechanism to provide life saving protection and long term solutions to vulnerable refugees trapped in Libya through a temporary evacuation to Rwanda.
The evacuation of refugees and asylum seekers out of Libya is in line with a Memorandum of Understanding signed on September 10, 2019 between the Government of Rwanda, UNHCR; the UN Refugee Agency, and the African Union to set up an emergency transit mechanism (ETM).
The Emergency Transit Mechanism aims at providing life-saving protection, assistance and long-term solutions to extremely vulnerable refugees trapped in detention in Libya, through temporary evacuation to Rwanda.
The Government of Rwanda ensures their safety and security while waiting for a durable solution for them. The first group of 66 refugees and asylum seekers from Libya arrived in Rwanda on 26th September, 2019. (End)