APA-Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) Food distribution has resumed in refugee camps across Ethiopia, a government agency has announced.
Refugees were facing extreme food insecurity after the UN and US paused humanitarian assistance in June, alleging large-scale diversions, the Refugees and Returnees Service (RRS) said in a statement on Thursday, noting that the food distribution has now resumed following an aggressive diplomatic effort.
Nearly a million refugees mostly from neighboring countries are currently living in Ethiopia and their number is increasing.
“Ethiopia is shouldering the huge burden by hosting refugees and asylum seekers, adding that it will stay committed to responding to their needs,” the statement quoted RRS Chief Teyiba Hassen as saying.
She called on the UNHCR and its partners to demonstrate concrete solidarity with refugees and host countries, emphasizing the principle of burden and responsibility sharing.
She said the number of refugees arriving from conflict-torn Sudan surpasses 85,000 since April.
According to the latest data from the UN migration agency, some 35,440 of the total arrivals are said to be female, while the remaining 50,056 are male.
Brutal fighting erupted in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum on April 15 and swiftly escalated in different parts of the country.
The ongoing fighting pits the Sudanese Armed Forces against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, with both sides accusing the other of starting the conflict.
MG/as/APA