Thursday, 26 September 2024 – The Government of Rwanda in partnership with the UN Refugee Agency (UNCHR) received the 19th group of 119 refugees and asylum seekers from Libya, the first group after extending the evacuation agreement until Dec 31, 2025.

They are evacuated from Libya under a memorandum of understanding signed between the Government of Rwanda, the African Union and the UNHCR to set up an emergency transit mechanism (ETM) to provide life-saving protection, assistance and long-term solutions to extremely vulnerable refugees stranded in Libya, through temporary evacuation to Rwanda.

The group comprises five nationalities: 41 Sudanese, 36 Eritreans, 12 Somalis, 17 Ethiopians, and 13 South Sudan nationals.

Mr. Philippe HABINSHUTI, the Permanent Secretary at Ministry in charge of Emergency Management (MINEMA) reiterated that Rwanda is safe for those who seek refuge.

“The priority for these asylum seekers is to ensure that they feel safe after the struggles they endured in Libya, but in collaboration with partners and stakeholders, we keep working together to find a durable solution including resettlements,” He stated.

Belen Calvo Uyarra, the European Union Ambassador in Rwanda, said that the EU contributed Euros 22 million to support the ETM in Rwanda.

“As for the Rwandan mechanism, we are considering an additional 11 million euros in support of this initiative for the coming years,” she said.

The first batch of 66 refugees and asylum seekers from Libya arrived in Rwanda in September 2019. Since then, more than 2,400 others have been received and 1,835 among them were resettled to third countries.