Burkina Faso/Protection of refugees and asylum seekers: private sector players made aware of their role
The National Commission for Refugees (CONAREF) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) want to play their part in the socio-economic integration of refugees and asylum seekers in Burkina Faso. An awareness-raising workshop on the recognition of documents issued to refugees and asylum seekers was held for private sector players on Tuesday September 26, 2023 in Ouagadougou.
Burkina Faso has been hosting thousands of refugees on its soil since 2012, when the Malian crisis broke out, in line with its international commitments on the right of asylum. As of August 31, 2023, the country has 37,249 refugees and asylum seekers, 99% of whom are of Malian origin. All these people benefit from international protection in Burkina Faso, which entitles them to documents whose importance in terms of legal protection no longer needs to be demonstrated.
In order to achieve better protection for refugees and asylum seekers in Burkina Faso through recognition of their documents, a workshop was held on Tuesday September 26, 2023 in Ouagadougou to raise awareness among private sector players. Among those invited were microfinance institutions, banking establishments, cell phone operators, commercial companies... International protection for refugees and asylum seekers begins with so-called legal and administrative protection, and takes the form of documents issued by their host country, Burkina Faso.
"When you leave your country for another country, you normally have to obtain a certain number of documents. The first document we issue to a refugee or asylum seeker is what we call the "acquis de droit". Naturally, it's a document that allows them to move around the country for at least a year. After that, the document must be renewed. But the essential documents that we are called upon to discuss with the players this morning essentially concern the refugee identity card, which is issued by the ONI, the same national structure that issues the national identity card. There is also the refugee or convention travel document. We call it the refugee passport, which is issued to any refugee living in Burkina Faso who requests it to travel outside the country."said Oumarou Kologo, Permanent Secretary of the National Refugee Commission (SP/CONAREF). Under normal circumstances, these two main documents can be used by financial institutions, banks and all other structures, and even for recruitment purposes.
However, notes Mr. Kologo, "they are not very well recognized by private players. We've also heard reports that some people using these documents are having difficulty accessing a number of services from these financial establishments and banks. These are some of the reasons why we wanted to have these discussions.
The reasons for the non-recognition of these documents issued by the State of Burkina Faso are varied. Firstly, these documents are not the usual ones, such as the CNIB or the national passport. "These documents are intended for specific actors who are not that numerous. 37,000 refugees in Burkina Faso. You have to understand that not everyone is issued with this document. It goes without saying that these establishments are not familiar with this type of document," explains Mr. Kologo.
The second reason has to do with legislation. At the level of cell phones, for example, a decree was adopted in 2018 that obliges them to recognize only certain documents. The CIR and TVC are not part of these documents, insists the SP/CONAREF, before making this announcement: "We are currently working with the department in charge of security so that these texts can be revised. The revision is already underway".
According to Mr. Kologo, this workshop will push back the frontiers of ignorance, the source of most of the ills undermining Burkinabè society. In fact, he says, "when there is a clear understanding of roles, the State and citizens each play their part, thus creating a space for personal development.a space for economic agents to flourish, resulting in economic growth for society as a whole. It is therefore very important that the inclusiveness and openness of the economic space should be the watchwords of the actions of all stakeholders, to avoid certain economic agents being on the margins of the system".
It should be noted that this meeting would not have been possible without the support of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCHR), to whom Mr. Kologo reiterated his thanks for the constancy of his multiform and multidimensional support. It will be renewed," assures Éliane Ngarndoumal, Associate Protection Officer at UNHCHR. The aim is to reach out to as many structures as possible to discuss issues relating to refugees' access to their benefits.
Source: lefaso.net/
