Namibia Maintains Open-Door Policy for Refugees

On Tuesday, Namibia's Commissioner of Refugees Josephine Nghimtina said that her country remains committed to receiving and protecting refugees in accordance with international law.

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"My office is committed to providing support and protection to asylum seekers and refugees. Recently, a Joint Assessment Mission consisting of United Nations agencies and government departments converged here in Osire Refugee Settlement to map out strategies towards improving food self-reliance in the settlement," Nghimtina said.

According to Nghimtina, this initiative is one of the milestones as it is aimed at improving food security for asylum seekers and refugees.

"As a government together with UNHCR, we have identified this initiative based on the current situation that poses a serious humanitarian threat to asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons," she noted.

Nghimtina meanwhile noted that countries need to reflect more on women and children who bear the terrible brunt of displacement.

This year's World Refugee Day was commemorated under the theme "Hope Away From Home: a World Where Refugees Are Always Included" and it was commemorated at Osire, a refugee camp in central Namibia, situated 200 km north of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia.

This camp was established in 1992 to accommodate refugees from Angola, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda and Somalia.