April 28, 2005

Delegates at a recent seminar on uprootedness at the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) appealed to African governments to budget money for assisting millions of refugees and internally displaced persons across the continent.

The challenges of refugees in Africa have reached an alarming proportion, Mr. Polycarp Omolo Ochilo, the Executive Director of International Affairs – AACC said, adding that these challenges have been aggravated by the enormous increase in the number of wars in Africa.

The net effect is that over 5 million of the total global number of refugees is in sub-Saharan Africa and over 3 million internally displaced are also in sub-Sahara Africa. This is why the AACC felt it urgent to hold a workshop on uprootedness in Africa.

Representatives came from all four of the geographical regions – East, West, Central and Southern Africa – in which the AACC has ongoing refugee programmes.

According to Mr. Ochilo, participants noted that the problem of uprootedness in Africa has not improved but instead has worsened given the sheer increase in the number of the uprooted people.

Other resolutions drawn by the delegates included a call to all AACC member churches to lobby their governments to enact legislation that recognizes and protects refugees basic human rights. Such legislation should provide a legal framework for the integration of refugees into the social systems of their host countries, allowing them access to employment, education, health care, and other basic human rights.

Noting that unfavourable policies by international financial institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Funds have generated economic insecurity across Africa, the delegates asked civil society organizations and Africa s governments to engage those institutions and the World Trade Organizations to reform their policies on issues such as the subsidizing of agricultural commodities from North America and European countries in the global market.

On governance, the participants resolved that churches should take keen interest in elections in their various countries to ensure that only candidates with vision for the future and commitment to their citizens are elected.

The delegates urged churches and the international community to help the AACC to build its capacity so that it could be able to handle the ever-increasing problems of uprootedness in various regions. That would include logistical support, training in advocacy, administration, and provision of communication facilities.

All Africa Conference of Churches