Monday August 15, 2016
Kabul (BNA) Unfortunately over the last two years, due to increasing insecurity, poverty and natural incidents, the number of Internal Displaced Peoples (IDPs) has been climbed. In an exclusive interview, Hafiz Ahmad Miakhil, media advisor of the ministry of refugees and repatriations (MoRR) told that over the recent years, around one million people have left their areas and displaced due to war and insecurity, most of whom were from Helmand, Farah, Nangarhar, Kunduz and other insecure provinces. In the capital Kabul, about 8,000 families are living as displaced who have mostly come from Helmand, Farah and Nangarhar provinces, Miakhil further said. The ministry in cooperation with international organizations could complete their survey and distributed foodstuff and other necessary materials to all of them, he added. On government’s plans on IDPs, he said, ‘the ministry has provided the refugees policy, based on which the national and international organizations will cooperate with us, which is including offering humanitarian services to IDPs after their survey.’
On resettlement of the displaced people, he continued that we are working on a plan to return the IDPs to their main areas, as different organizations cooperate with us in the respect. On those recently returned to their country, he said, ‘since the beginning of the current year, more than 62,000 have returned, mostly from Pakistan and Iran.’ Lack of shelter and job opportunities are one of the main concerns to displaced and returnees, Miakhil said, ‘the returnees will be urgently assisted which is being done by national and international organizations, besides, the government of Afghanistan is making effort to provide shelter and job opportunities to them.’ On distribution of land to returnees, Miakhil said, ‘totally, we have distributed land to returnees in 34 provinces of the country, for instance, in Bagrami district, Alaskan Township, where 1000 apartments have been built and 500 families are living there.’ Earlier, President Ashraf Ghani stressed on ending displacement culture in the country and called IDPs problem an important issue, adding there are 1.5 million displaced people in the country and we are making effort to practically step up to solve the problem in its earliest. This is while that based on official statistics of the government of Afghanistan, currently; there are 1.5 million IDPs, most of whom have left their areas due to insecurity and poverty. Suraya Raiszada
