LUSAKA, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- Zambia was expected to experience an increased number of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) before the end of this year, a government official said on Tuesday.
Abdon Mawere, Commissioner of Refugees in the Home Affairs Ministry, said the country has already started seeing an increase in the number of DRC refugees in recent weeks.
He said during a stakeholders' consultative meeting that it was anticipated that Zambia will host about 76,000 refugees from the DRC by the end of 2018 and added that the government was committed with its efforts to take care of the refugees.
The government, he said, will start including refugees in national planning systems in order to allow them have access to social services.
Pierrine Aylara, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Representative in Zambia, said there was need for concerted efforts from all stakeholders to help authorities in the southern African nation take care of the refugees.
While commending Zambia for its resolve to take care of the refugees over the years, the UNHCR official said collective responsibility was required to complement the country's efforts.
She said the UNHCR has since developed a comprehensive refugee response framework, the multi-year, multi-partner partner protection framework, to help countries like Zambia take a holistic approach to tackling the refugee crisis.
The framework was aimed at easing pressure on host countries, enhance refugees' self-reliance and support conditions in countries of origin for return in safety and dignity.
According to her, Zambia currently hosts bout 74,000 persons of concerns, which includes refugees, asylum seekers, with 83 percent of them being from the DRC.
About 10,000 of the DRC refugees are being kept at a new refugee camp in Zambia's Nchelenge district in Luapula Province.
"The government and people of Zambia have generously responded to the plight of refugees and many other thousands of refugees before them, offering international protection, safety and the opportunity to continue to build their lives in peaceful coexistence with Zambia and it is now our time and collective responsibility to offer support," she said.
