At least 81 asylum seekers from Libya who were hosted in Rwanda’s emergency transit mechanism in Bugesera District, Gashora Transit Centre, have been resettled in different countries, since their arrival last year. Forty-nine of them were resettled before the Covid-19 outbreak whereas 33 were relocated to Canada and Norway after Kigali resumed air transport, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The UN agency also hopes that between 30 to 40 more asylum seekers will depart to France and Norway before the end of this year. “Since the resuming of air transport, we have received delegations from France to conduct interviews so that departures might take place as soon as possible”, says Elise Laura Villechalane, the UNHCR external relations officer. Current statistics show that 306 refugees have been evacuated to Rwanda, and a third of them is expected to have been relocated by the end of this year. They are of different nationalities, mainly the Horn of African countries of Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea. Rwanda made the commitment to host the African refugees trapped in Libya after their desperate journeys to seek asylum in European countries were cut short as European nations stepped up migrant controls. Persons eligible to benefit from the center include refugees recognized by UNHCR Libya, asylum-seekers registered with UNHCR Libya, children and youth at risk (registered as refugees) as well as spouses and children of asylum-seekers and refugees. The refugees have the right to access medical care, school and work.
