ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- East African ministers on Thursday urged for concerted efforts to exert concerted efforts to address the needs of the increased numbers of refugees and forced displacements in the region.
Ministers from eight East African countries, including Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda, made the urgent call in their final communique, which was issued on Thursday as part of the major outcomes of the second Inter-Ministerial Stocktaking Meeting on the Nairobi Declaration and Action Plan that was held on late Wednesday in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.
"The ministers agreed to intensify the continuing efforts to address the root causes of increased numbers of refugees and other drivers of forced displacements in the region, while advocating for further international burden sharing," according to the joint communique issued after the inter-ministerial meeting that was organized by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).
They also "observed the shrinking of protection and asylum space worldwide as a result of intolerance, closing of borders and forced the return of refugees as well as reduced opportunities for resettlements."
The ministers also emphasized "the increasing levels of forced displacement in the IGAD region resulting in higher numbers of refugees and asylum seekers in the Member States and heavier burden on host states and communities."
According to the joint communique, the ministers also agreed to develop and cost national and sectoral response plans and financing strategies to support the realization of the pledges made by the IGAD member countries.
The need to undertake periodic assessments and publish an annual report of the state of migration and forced displacement in the IGAD region to document the dynamics, trends, processes, and responses to refugees, returnees and host communities in line with the Nairobi action plan was also said to be another area the ministers agreed.
The high-level inter-ministerial stocktaking meeting brought together ministers of the eight IGAD member countries together with humanitarian and development partners to conduct a second review on the progress made in the implementation of the Nairobi Declaration and Action Plan in the region.
The Nairobi Declaration and Plan of Action on durable solutions for Somali refugees and reintegration of returnees in Somalia was adopted by heads of state and government of IGAD member countries back in March 2017.
The urgent call also came amid the increasing rate of refugees as well as forced displacement across the region.
According to a report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the number of refugees in the Horn of Africa remains high with over 4 million and another 8 million Internally Displaced Persons across the region.
