On 2 November 2022, after a week of negotiations, the Government of Ethiopia and the People’s Liberation Front of Tigray signed a peace agreement ending two years of bloody conflict. Thanks to the agreement, the UNHCR and other partners have been able to intensify humanitarian aid, delivering medicines, clothing, shelter supplies and other essential goods to the population.

During his visit, Grandi met with President Sahle-Work Zewde, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Demeke Mekonnen and other officials, whom he thanked for Ethiopia’s continued hospitality towards refugees. In fact, he highlighted that, despite the obvious effects of climate change and the general instability of the area, the Ethiopian government has welcomed thousands of refugees from Somalia and South Sudan, and he called on the international community to intensify its financial commitment and the delivery of essential and most urgent humanitarian aid.

He also visited the settlement of Alemwach, which currently hosts 22,000 people. Although it can provide a certain degree of security for refugees and internally displaced persons, the site needs improvements to ensure that people can rebuild their lives. Indeed, it called for a strengthening of essential services (including health and education) and, in line with the Global Compact on Refugees, urged the international community to commit itself to ensuring closer bonds of solidarity between host communities and refugees, so that they can live adequately and peacefully.

In 2022, UNHCR did not receive adequate fundings for the humanitarian response in Ethiopia, making this humanitarian operation one of the least funded globally. For 2023, therefore, the UNHCR stresses the need to obtain about 370 million dollars in order to find effective solutions and be able to assist refugees and internally displaced persons in the best possible way.

To read more, visit:

• Following peace efforts, UNHCR’s Grandi urges support and solutions for refugees and displaced in Ethiopia - Ethiopia | ReliefWeb
• Ethiopia: UN refugee agency chief calls for more aid, new long-term strategy | UN News
• UN High Commissioner Visits Displaced in Ethiopia (voanews.com)

by Amalia Ranieri