ZAMBIAN GOVERNMENT URGES UNHCR AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS TO EMPLOY MORE ZAMBIANS
11th October, 2023
Zambia has appealed to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other international organisations to employ more Zambians to work for their organisations.
Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security, Honourable Jack Jacob Mwiimbu, MP, made an appeal through UNHCR High Commissioner Mr. Filippo Grandi saying that Zambia has qualified citizens to work for international organisations but only few were recruited.
The Minister made an appeal when he met Mr. Grandi on the sidelines of the ongoing 74th Session of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner’s Programme (EXCOM) in Geneva on 11th October, 2023.
Mr. Mwiimbu informed the High Commissioner that it was disheartening to learn that very few Zambians were given opportunities to serve in international organisations like UNHCR both locally and internationally despite the country being a member state of the organisations.
The Minister further expressed concern over the continued trimming of the operational budget for refugee management provided by UNHCR to the Government when the country was hosting a huge number of asylum seekers and refugees.
He said the continued trimming of the operational budget had greatly affected the operations of Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security in refugee management and appealed to the High Commissioner to consider increasing the budget.
Responding to the Minister’s concerns, Mr. Grandi assured Mr. Mwiimbu that he would look into his request considering that Zambia has been an all-weather friend of the UNHCR and that the country has been hosting refugees since the 1940s.
The High Commissioner also informed the Minister that UNHCR was looking at ways of ensuring the operational budget was increased by lobbying other international donors to consider allocating more funds for refugee management in Zambia.
Mr. Grandi said UNHCR would lobby other international organisations to increase resource allocation to Zambia especially that the country is implementing the Modernisation of Refugee Host Communities and Settlement Approach (MORHCSA) which would not only benefit refugees but host communities as well.
Issued by
Jim C. Chibuye
(Original signed)
Public Relations Officer
Office of the Commissioner for Refugees
MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS AND INTERNAL SECURITY