JOHANNESBURG, 28 February (IRIN)- The
UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Monday it had called
on the UN World Food Programme (WFP) to begin supplying food to "desperate"
Angolan refugees in Namibia's Osire camp, about 230 km north of the capital
Windhoek.
Mengesha Kebede, UNHCR representative
in South Africa told IRIN: "We have memorandum of understanding with
WFP which states that if the population exceeds 5,000 we usually call on
WFP to assist, and so we have called on the food agency to take over the
food sector."
Kebede, who has just returned from Osire, said there were now 9,200 refugees at the camp and described the situation as "desperate", with one of the most pressing problems being inadequate nursing staff and water supplies.
He added that "overall responsibility", such as communicating with the Namibian government and the distribution of non-food items remained with UNHCR.
[ENDS]
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