Statement on the Occasion of Africa Refugee Day

"The refugee problem in our continent continues to pose many challenges to Africa and the international community as a whole. Africa continues to hold about 6 million refugees and more than 12 million displaced persons. The main root causes of the refugee problems on the continent are basically conflicts, human right abuses, drought and famine, natural disasters and calamities as well as adverse social and economic conditions affecting a number of our member states. Our attempts to tackle the root causes of this human tragedy over the years have, at times, been frustrated by other negative factors."