Japan donates US $1.5 million to UNHCR

The Japanese government has donated US $1.5 million to the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Iran to help Afghan refugees. The donation comes at a time when there has been a steady decline in donor contributions to UNHCR’s Afghan repatriation programme, coupled with a cutback in UNHCR’S country budget for Iran. “The reason the Japanese went for a generous contribution is that they see the lack of assistance to Iran,” said Safak Pavey, UNHCR external relations and public information officer in Iran. Even though UNHCR’s regional budget of $105 million has not been reduced, the budget for repatriation operations in Iran, which now stands at $15 million, has been cut during the last two years. Instead, the money is being targeted at the development of Afghanistan, marking a shift in donor priorities towards the reconstruction of the war-shattered country. Pavey also attributes declining donor contributions to Iran’s Afghan repatriation programme to donor fatigue. “Donor countries are pretty tired as they see this as a never-ending story. There are huge numbers of Afghans still left in Iran that need assistance, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel and we must remember that we’re dealing with humans here,” Pavey said. The Japanese donation will go towards transportation arrangements and will cover medical expenses while refugees are completing the legal formalities involved in returning to Afghanistan. The contribution will target the most vulnerable Afghan refugees, namely single female headed households, disabled children, the elderly and unemployed heads of households. Since the start of UNHCR's voluntary repatriation programme in April 2002, undertaken in cooperation with Iran and Afghanistan, some 1.45 million Afghans have returned to Afghanistan. However, many Afghans have been reluctant to return. Sixty percent of the Afghan refugee population has been living in Iran for at least 15 years and unlike other refugee populations in the region, the majority of Afghans in Iran do not live in refugee camps, but are fully integrated members of society. Afghans are also concerned about the lack of facilities in Afghanistan, such as schooling, medication and housing, as well as the domination of warlords and insecurity in parts of the country. Tehran has recently stepped up efforts to encourage Afghans to return home. Such measures include a reduction of government services, the introduction of school fees for Afghan children and a ban on Afghans settling in a number of Iranian provinces.