© UNMIL/S.Winters

As daily population movements continue to take place out of a politically unstable Ivory Coast, UNHCR has intensified monitoring along the border in neighboring Liberia which is still receiving a majority of the 38,000 refugees.

The host communities in Liberia are finding it difficult to absorb the relatively high number of refugees arriving on a daily basis. UNHCR and its partners are rushing to set up a site to accommodate a large portion of the refugee population presently in host communities.  Most of the work on the reception area of the camp is complete - where a health centre, kitchen, dining hall, toilets and bathing areas are located.  A second 200-acre site 38km from Seclepea is also in the process of being assessed for accommodating refugees.
Some 15 relocation villages identified by UNHCR together with the Liberian Government are also being prepared to receive the Ivorian refugee population. UNHCR will visit the relocation villages to survey the area and assess how many refugees can be accommodated. If additional shelter space is needed, UNHCR will make the necessary additions in line with the same type of shelter used by the local population.

An information campaign is also being introduced to ensure that refugees are able to make informed decisions on whether to move to the camps, relocation villages or remain along the border. While transfer to the camps and relocation villages is voluntary, UNHCR is strongly discouraging refugees from remaining with host families along the border because of security concerns and because the refugees will not benefit from additional individual relief.

Following this information campaign, UNHCR will register those who wish to move to the camps and host families, in order to help with transportation arrangements. UNHCR is also identifying those with special needs – elderly, breastfeeding mothers, unaccompanied children, persons with disabilities among others - and referring them to the relevant specialized institutions.

UNHCR is also boosting its stockpile of non-food items (NFIs) and logistical support to ensure a swift, uninterrupted aid supply to the Ivorian refugees. The third emergency airlift of NFIs – carrying 15,000 plastic sheeting, 400 tents and 400 rolls arrived in mid February and was dispatched to Seclepea.

February also saw UNHCR fly in 94 tonnes of aid to assist the 35,000 internally displaced people in remote western areas of Ivory Coast. This was the first airlift of UNHCR aid to the Ivorian capital for those displaced by the political crisis that followed November's presidential election. A UNHCR road convoy carried a further 93 tonnes of aid to Ivory Coast, including 15,000 blankets, 10,000 sleeping mats, mosquito nets and plastic sheeting.

Many displaced people have reported physical and sexual violence and cannot return to their homes because they have been burnt down. Many have been surviving on the generosity of local families and charities, with reports of some families sheltering up to 25 people each and struggling to make ends meet. UNHCR is looking for additional sites to accommodate more IDPs and has begun clearing the ground for a new camp for 6,000 displaced people in Western Ivory Coast. The shortage of shelter has led to deteriorating humanitarian conditions and we hope that the camp will ease pressure, especially for the most vulnerable.

In a statement, UNHCR High Commissioner António Guterres called for an urgent end to the paralyzing political stalemate which is causing widespread fear. "The political blockade is becoming more deeply entrenched, causing the humanitarian situation to get worse and worse," said Guterres. He warned that "we face the risk of a possible massive displacement of Ivorians" and that this could have a negative impact on Liberia and other countries in the region. He thus called for international solidarity with the Ivorian people and "urgent international political action" which is "necessary to resolve the stalemate and restore calm."