U.S. Committee for Refugees World Refugee Survey 1998 - Ethiopia

  Ethiopia hosted more than 310,000 refugees at the end of 1997: an estimated 240,000 from Somalia, 60,000 from Sudan, 8,000 from Kenya, and 5,000 from Djibouti. Nearly 50,000 Ethiopians were refugees in neighboring countries, including some 40,000 in Sudan, 5,000 in Kenya, 2,000 in Djibouti and 1,000 in Yemen. As many as 800,000 Ethiopian refugees have repatriated during the 1990s, including about 9,000 in 1997. An estimated 10,000 new Sudanese refugees arrived in Ethiopia during the year, while more than 10,000 Somali refugees in Ethiopia repatriated. USCR conducted a site visit to Somali refugee camps in northeastern Ethiopia during the year. Refugees from Somalia About two-thirds of the Somali refugee population in Ethiopia arrived during 1988-91 at the height of Somalia's civil war. Most others arrived during 1994-95, as violence continued to erupt in Somalia. An estimated 90 percent of all Somali refugees in Ethiopia originated from northern Somalia, known as Somaliland. Estimates of the actual number of refugees in Ethiopia have varied considerably over the years due to difficulties in conducting an accurate census, and poor controls on the use of food cards. An early 1997 census significantly reduced UNHCR's estimate of the size of the refugee population. The vast majority of refugees‹about 220,000 or more‹lived in nine long-established camps in northeastern Ethiopia. Another 10,000 to 20,000 lived in urban areas. Some 5,000 to 15,000 resided at three sites in the remote southeast corner of the country, where they received limited assistance from UNHCR and ICRC. UNHCR and international donors have gradually curtailed aid to the Somali refugee population to encourage their repatriation and resolve problems of alleged diversion of aid supplies. The largest refugee camp, Hartisheik, containing some 60,000 Somalis, has gradually been allowed to fall into disrepair. Although 350,000 or more Somalis have repatriated since 1991, relatively few went home during 1995-97. UNHCR originally planned to assist 40,000 or more Somalis to repatriate during 1997 and budgeted $30 million for the program. Only 11,000 chose to repatriate, however, due in part to difficult conditions inside Somalia. Some 10,000 repatriated from three camps in the first half of the year as part of a UNHCR pilot repatriation program; about 1,000 more repatriated in December. Refugees received a nine-month food ration and the equivalent of $30 prior to their return to Somalia in UNHCR convoys. Refugees from Sudan Civil war in Sudan has pushed waves of refugees into Ethiopia since the 1980s, reaching a peak of more than 300,000 in 1991. Although most eventually returned home, continued warfare in Sudan has produced new refugee flows into Ethiopia since 1993. An estimated 10,000 new refugees fled to Ethiopia during 1997. Most settled into a new camp with UNHCR assistance. Many of the new arrivals were in a "desperate state of famine," according to Ethiopian officials. Refugees from previous years continued to reside in three other camps, Fugnido, Bonga, and Dimma, all located in western Ethiopia. A UNHCR census during the year discovered that fewer Sudanese refugees were living in camps than previously believed. Aid workers have largely divided camp occupants along ethnic lines to avoid hostilities among the refugee population. Most Sudanese who arrived prior to 1997 were in satisfactory health, according to UNHCR. About 14,000 refugee children attended schools. The three most established camps provided a combined 900 hectares of agricultural land for refugees, but "the amount of farm land was not adequate to enable the refugees [to] attain self-sufficiency," UNHCR reported. Ethiopian officials complained that the continued influx of Sudanese refugees caused deforestation and water pollution within a 40-km radius of some refugee sites. Refugees from Djibouti, Kenya An insurgency in Djibouti pushed an estimated 15,000 refugees into northern Ethiopia in the early 1990s. Most are believed to have returned to Djibouti several years ago. In 1997, as in previous years, UNHCR was unable to verify the number of Djiboutian refugees remaining in Ethiopia. Most of the refugees were nomadic ethnic Afars who were indistinguishable from Ethiopian Afars. WFP provided food aid intended for the refugee population. An estimated 8,000 Kenyan refugees, who sought asylum in Ethiopia in 1993 to escape ethnic conflict, remained in southern Ethiopia. Most were reportedly ethnic Ajuran and ethnic Degodian. Many Kenyan refugees lived in two camps, received food aid from WFP, and used local schools and health facilities. UNHCR and Kenyan officials visited the refugees in July to encourage refugee leaders to travel into Kenya to assess conditions for repatriation. UNHCR planned to begin an organized repatriation program for the refugees in 1998. Repatriation of Ethiopian Refugees Ethiopians who fled their country's civil war and other conflicts during the 1980s and early 1990s continued to return gradually to their home areas in 1997. An estimated 800,000 Ethiopians have repatriated since the 1991 end to their country's bloody civil war, including about 9,000 returnees in 1997. Approximately 50,000 remained refugees in three neighboring countries at year's end. About 65,000 Ethiopians have officially repatriated from Sudan in the past five years, including nearly 7,000 in 1997. UNHCR had hoped to repatriate two or three times that many refugees from Sudan during the year, but governmental delays, financial constraints, and roads closed by rains hampered repatriation efforts. About 15,000 of the 40,000 Ethiopians remaining in Sudan are expected to repatriate in 1998. Returnees from Sudan received nine months of food aid, transportation assistance, and a monetary reintegration grant equivalent to about $150. Most settled into three states in Ethiopia. About 2,000 Ethiopian refugees repatriated from Kenya, primarily by air. They received a nine-month food supply upon return. Some returnees received a $30 grant to facilitate domestic transportation to their homes. Although 2,000 Ethiopian refugees remained in Djibouti, UNHCR's organized repatriation program from that country has terminated. Some 36,000 Ethiopians returned from Djibouti during 1994-96.