UN refugee agency moves first group of CAR refugees to camp

Trucks crawled along muddy roads on Wednesday, carrying the first group of thousands of Central African refugees from makeshift shelters inside Chad to a camp where they can regularly receive food and other assistance. Almost 100 refugees made the trek from the rural town of Betel to a camp in Gore, Mbaioren Djerassen of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) told IRIN by telephone. "The roads are already very difficult to pass," Djerassen said, speaking from the Chadian capital, N'djamena. It took the UNHCR convoy about four hours to travel the 60 km to the Amboko camp in Gore. According to UNHCR estimates, about 10,000 CAR refugees are scattered across 17 villages inside Chad, having fled fighting between government forces and unidentified armed groups in early June. That is in addition to about 30,000 other refugees who have been living in camps in southern Chad since fleeing conflict in Central African Republic nearly three years ago. The June arrivals have had no access to safe drinking water or proper sanitation. Many have been living on wild fruits and roots. UNHCR has been in discussions with the Chadian government for weeks to ensure the refugees safe passage to a location where they can receive regular assistance. Last week the government gave the refugee agency the green light to move the refugees to Amboko, which is already home to 13,000 refugees. It has the capacity to house about 27,000 people. The government normally cuts truck access to most of the country’s roads throughout the rainy season to avoid further degradation, but UNHCR official Marie-Christiane Boccoum said the agency had received special permission for the convoy from the government. UNHCR started the relocations with the village of Betel, primarily because it has the largest population of refugees among the Chadian villages affected, Boccoum said. Betel, which has a local population of about 600, is now housing nearly 3,000 refugees. The 97 refugees that were moved on Wednesday have been registered and have begun receiving food rations and supplies, Djerassen said. UNHCR is working with the government and its NGO partners to restore the airstrip in Gore to allow for UN passenger planes to transport staff and supplies to the area, he added. It is impossible to know when all the refugees will be settled into Amboko camp, Djerassen explained, because it is difficult to factor in how much the rains will damage the roads. "We cannot estimate how many days this will take," he said.