There has been little change in the pace
of the outflow of refugees from Togo over the last week, with the total
number in neighbouring Benin and Ghana slowly climbing to 36,809 compared
to 35,743 last Friday. All new arrivals are in Benin on Togo's eastern
border with some 100 refugees registered daily at the main border crossing
point at Hilakondji, and similar numbers registering in the capital Cotonou.
Most of the new arrivals are young men, many saying they are fleeing from
fear of abductions, disappearances and targeting by security forces. There
are now 21,641 refugees in Benin, with nearly 8,000 sheltering at two camp
sites at Come and Agame/Lokossa. The remainder are staying with family
or friends. UNHCR is trucking in further non-food supplies for 2,500 people
from its regional emergency stockpile in Accra, Ghana. We have also delivered
2,000 mosquito nets for internally displaced people inside Togo, as part
of the UN inter-agency collaborative effort. UNHCR is planning to open
a field office in Lomé shortly, and additional non-food items will be transported
from Accra as part of the interagency aid effort. UNHCR welcomes the creation
this week by the Togolese Government of a High Commission for Refugees
and Humanitarian Aid.
In Ghana, there have been no new arrivals
or departures over the last two weeks and the numbers remain steady at
15,168 registered refugees. Virtually all the refugees are staying with
welcoming host families in about 200 different locations spread out over
a wide geographical area from North to South Volta region, in both rural
and urban areas. The distances and diversity of locations are a major challenge
to UNHCR and its partners in delivering assistance targeted at supporting
the refugees, host families and communities so this community living situation
can be sustained.