He welcomed the High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr. Filipo Grandi, to the Third Committee and thanked him for the briefing and presentation of the report ”, says a press release received here today from New York. Ambassador Aamir Khan said that ' during last year, the number of refugees and displaced persons continued to surge to record level'. He termed COVID-19 pandemic as a reason that has added to the existing challenges of responding to the needs of people seeking refugee from war, conflict, persecution and climate change. He expressed concern on the skyrocketing food, fuel and fertilizer prices saying that "have taken a further toll on all, especially the vulnerable populations". "The prevailing complex and multifold challenges demand more robust and collective efforts to meet the growing protection needs and to forge durable solutions", he urged. He commended the UNHCR leadership and the team for their dedication in discharging their responsibilities under challenging circumstances. Mentioning Pakistan's contributions, he said that, "despite its economic and social pressures, Pakistan demonstrated unparalleled generosity and hospitality in hosting Afghan refugees for four decades and adhered to the highest standards of protection and facilitation, which also continued during the pandemic" "Today, Pakistan hosts more than 1.4 million registered Afghan refugees and 850,000 Afghan Citizen Card holders. Refugees are provided the same health facilities as provided to Pakistanis. They have free enrolment in government primary schools and access to higher and professional education with generous scholarships. They can open bank accounts with clearance. Numerous livelihood opportunities are open to them" he added. " Last year, Pakistan also supported the complex and emergency humanitarian efforts in Afghanistan, facilitating the evacuations, establishing humanitarian air and land corridors, providing of food, medicines and other supplies" he said. He acknowledged the contribution of our partners, including towards the Refugees Affected and Hosting Areas (RAHA) initiative. But mentioned that " only a fraction of Pakistan’s own outlays, these contributions help in advancing social cohesion". Among other initiatives, Ambassador Aamir Khan mentioned that "Pakistan has launched the SSAR Support Platform on the basis of its three pillars: enabling conditions for voluntary repatriation; sustainable reintegration in Afghanistan, and support to the host countries". As the co-convener of the first Global Refugee Forum, Pakistan remains committed to the objectives of the Global Compact on Refugees, Ambassador Aamir Khan said. Pakistan welcome the pledges made at the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) and urge that these pledges for refugees and host countries be honoured and fulfilled, he said. He further urged while valuing UNHCR efforts to broaden the support base for refugees and reach out to new partner states and institutions that these efforts should result in tangible growth in the humanitarian funding. While devising its global operations policy, Ambassador Aamir Khan urged UNHCR to be sensitive to the regional and local requirements of refugee hosting countries and ensure implementation of its polices consistent with the local environment and conditions. He informed that85% of refugees continue to be hosted by developing countries, concerning "this is a disproportion to burden on countries with limited resources". "The financing instruments for support to Refugees need to be designed and implemented in ways that do not exacerbate the existing high debt burdens of refugee hosting countries and adhere to the essence of the principle of equitable burden and responsibility sharing", he urged. He assured High Commissioner, of Pakistan's continued support and commitment to the protection of refugees and to durable peace and stability in the world.
PREVIOUS NEXT
