UNHCR Unites Refugees and Host Communities in Chad
Date:
Mar 9, 2010
News Source:
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
Two years ago, UNHCR closed health centres in two refugee camps in the south of Chad and opened a new one in a local village between the camps. It could serve as a symbol of all the refugee agency's policies in the area: UNHCR understood that both fairness and success required showing concern for refugees and their hosts in exile.
The UNHCR office in the town of Gore used to initiate small-scale projects, like drilling wells that benefitted the local population, on an ad-hoc basis to reduce potential resentment of the refugees. But since 2008, UNHCR has systematically promoted initiatives to help integrate refugees into the local community.
