UNHCR returns nearly 62,000 Somali refugees from Kenya

The UN refugee agency said Tuesday it has repatriated some 61,665 Somali refugees in Kenya since the return exercise begun in December 2014.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in its bi-weekly Update released in Nairobi that some 1,836 refugees were supported to return to their home in Somalia in the past ten days.

The UN agency said 22,351 out of 61,665 refugees were supported in 2017 alone, adding that 20,991 refugees are currently being registered for voluntary repatriation.

"Road convoys to Somalia are suspended due to the heavy rains in Dadaab area of operation and some parts of Somalia. UNHCR Somalia and its partners are closely monitoring the accessibility of roads in the twelve designated return areas," it said.

However, UNHCR said flights to Mogadishu currently facilitate the voluntary return of those willing to travel by air as well as flights to Kismayu in southern Somalia.

More than two million Somalis have been displaced in one of the world's most protracted humanitarian crises that have now entered its third decade.

An estimated 1.1 million people are internally displaced (IDPs) within Somalia and nearly 900,000 are refugees in the region.

Experts say continuing political and security stabilization progress in Somalia, along with growing pressures in hosting countries, makes this a critical moment to renew efforts to find durable solutions for Somali refugees. Endit