On June 20, 2022 the Ministry in charge of Emergency Management – MINEMA, together with the UNHCR joined hands with refugees and asylum seekers hosted in Rwanda to celebrate the World Refugee Day, this year themed “Everyone has the right to seek safety.”

On the occasion, the Minister in charge of Emergency Management, Marie Solange KAYISIRE together with the European Union Ambassador to Rwanda, Nicola Bellomo and the Representative of UNHCR, Ahmed Baba Fall, inaugurated a newly constructed three-storey accommodation facility, known as Ikaze Residence and Gashora Police Station.

Both facilities serve asylum seekers and refugees hosted in the Gashora Emergency Transit Mechanism (ETM) Center where the day was celebrated on national level. The World Refugee Day was also celebrated in refugee camps; Mahama, Mugombwa, Kigeme, Kiziba and Nyabiheke as well as in urban areas hosting refugees.

At the ETM Centre in Gashora, Minister KAYISIRE told refugees that Rwanda is committed to protect them, contribute to their self-reliance and help them build a sustainable future.

“Rwanda has consistently expressed commitment to its international obligation to receive and protect refugees. Investments have been made to integrate refugees within national systems and to allow them participate in local economies for their self-reliance. We appreciate refugees who started the journey towards sustainable future free from dependence on humanitarian assistance. We call upon all refugees to change their mind and work very hard to be self-reliant in the near future.” Said Minister KAYISIRE.

The representative of UN Refugee Agency to Rwanda, Mr. Ahmed Baba Fall commended the Government of Rwanda for welcoming and hosting the forcibly displaced including refugees and called for more humanitarian support.

“UNHCR remains grateful to the government of Rwanda and the host community for welcoming and hosting the forcibly displaced including refugees. We continue to call for increased and sustained donor support so that humanitarian actors including UNHCR, are able to deliver critical aid and solutions to people forced to flee,” emphasized Baba Fall.

Minister KAYISIRE appreciated the progress made in region which enabled voluntary repatriation of close to 30,000 Burundian refugees. She encouraged concerned parties in the region to put in place comprehensive solutions and plans that will encourage and enable continuous voluntarily return home in safe and dignified manner.  

She reiterated the Government of Rwanda’s commitment and openness to discuss and implement with various stakeholders’ ideas and solutions on problems related to displacement and migration. She also reaffirmed the Government commitment on its international obligations and to ensure continuous partnership and collaboration with different stakeholders, by ensuring security, protection and assistance to refugees, asylum seekers and other people in need of humanitarian protection.

Reduction of dependency to humanitarian assistance and achievement of graduating out of poverty through socio-economic inclusion and the promotion of self-reliance are at the heart of Government of Rwanda’s commitments and UNHCR’s protection mandate.

Currently, Rwanda hosts over 127,000 refugees mainly from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Burundi. Since 2019, over 1,000 asylum seekers evacuated from Libya have been hosted in the ETM centre, awaiting long-term solutions including resettlement in third countries. As of June 2022, 629 refugees had been resettled in Canada, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Belgium and France.