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Maureen Lynch is Director of Research and George Kun is McCall-Pierpaoli Fellow with Refugees International.
Refugees fleeing fighting and persecution in their homeland have the right to seek safety without obstruction. In reality, however, they face difficulties at checkpoints and borders. Guards, law enforcement officials, or militias in home or host country may physically prevent movement. Would-be refugees may be forced to pay arbitrary fees with cash, labor, sexual favors, or other means. The inability of an individual

IP/03/1181
Brussels, 28 August 2003 - The European Commission has approved a €25 million aid package to support victims of the humanitarian crisis in Southern Africa. The funds will help meet the food, water, sanitation and health needs of vulnerable people in nine countries. The aid is channelled through the Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO), which comes under the responsibility of Commissioner Poul Nielson. Commenting on the new funding decision, Mr Nielson said: "Millions of people in Southern Africa are facing a desperate situation and the Commission

CAN REGIONAL MARKETS, IMPROVED MAIZE AVAILABILITY ADDRESS ACUTE FOOD INSECURITY IN 2003-04?
The latest cereal balance sheet figures confirm that maize availability at the national level looks more favorable than last year for most countries in the region (although there are serious localized problems in Mozambique, Swaziland and also Tanzania, and Zimbabwe continues to have serious problems - see next page). There will continue to be import needs in several countries and a number of important questions arise from this:

FOOD SECURITY RISKS CONTINUE DESPITE GOOD PRODUCTION
Households and communities in the SADC region are considerably more vulnerable to food and livelihood insecurity today than they were a decade ago. This is illustrated by the impact of the 2002 food crisis compared to the 1992 crisis. In 1992, the magnitude of harvest failures were higher than a decade later, yet the impact on food security and livelihoods was lower. Households and communities are today bearing the brunt of compounded social, natural and economic shocks

GABORONE, June 4 (AFP)- An agreement aiming to kick-start the repatriation of Angolan refugees from Botswana to their homeland was signed in Gaborone on Wednesday.

The agreement, signed by Angolan Foreign Minister George Chikoty and representatives from Botswana and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, encourages Angolans to register for repatriation.

"Angola started the process of repatriation shortly after peace was found in the country," said Agostino Neto, an Angolan diplomat who took part in the signing ceremony.

"People are now going back to their

GABORONE, June 2 (AFP) - Angolan President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos was set to pay a three-day state visit to Botswana starting Tuesday to discuss the repatriation of Angolan refugees, an official said Monday.

Botswana's High Commissioner to Angola, Gaothetse Matlhabapri, said the two countries and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) would sign an agreement to facilitate the repatriation process.

"There are 850 Angolans in the country classified as refugees," Matlhabapri told reporters in Gaberone.

"The UNHCR, Angola and Botswana

THIS APPEAL SEEKS CHF 13.6 MILLION (USD 10.3 MILLION OR EUR 9 MILLION) IN CASH, KIND AND SERVICES TO ASSIST 347,000 BENEFICIARIES FOR 6 MONTHS (AUGUST TO DECEMBER 2003)
SUMMARY

The operation aims to support 347,000 people through food security and integrated community care from the Red Cross National Societies of Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Lasting five months, it will require an investment of CHF 13.6 million. The assistance will strengthen the safety net for these targeted vulnerable people and include integrated household