Burundian Refugees In Tanzania May Return Home Soon

Burundi refugees taking shelter in the western part of Tanzania could return back to their own country and help in the rebuilding of the nation as the long run war is over, but a proper procedure is to be followed for the repatriation and this is the reason the ministers will be meeting the Burundi counterpart and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The one-day tripartite meet will be held in Tanzania’s commercial capital Dar es Salaam and will be chaired by the country’s Minister for Home Affairs, Mwigulu Nchemba.

Last week the minister urged UNHCR to start repatriation to the earliest as more than 8,000 Burundian refugees have volunteered to be returning back to their home.

Nchemba was speaking at the Nduta refugee camp in the Kigoma region and said the international organization should start organizing logistics for their safe return immediately.

He added, “Failure to repatriate the refugees, I will consult with the Minister for Defense to release military trucks that will ferry the refugees to Burundi.”

Last month Tanzanian president John Magufuli too called on the refugees to return back home and help in the building of their country. His remarks were in response to the call of Burundian president Pierre Nkurunziza, who too called the same on his fellow countrymen citing the “war is over.”