20 Mar 2019

The Dukwi Refugee Camp annual expenditure for the 2017/2018 financial year stood at P903 757 against the warranted P1 million, excluding salaries, education and health.

Assistant Minister for Presidential Affairs, Governance and Public Administration, Mr Machana Shamukuni told Parliament on March 19 that Botswana hosted 2 055 refugees.

Answering a question from the specially elected MP, Mr Mephato Reatile on behalf of the Defence, Justice and Security, Mr Shamukuni stated that in the past five years, Botswana received 679 applications for asylum.

He pointed out that out of the number, eight people were granted refugee status and 663 were rejected while five withdrew their applications for asylum.

Mr Shamukuni stated that it should be appreciated that of the 663 rejected asylum seekers, 371 were released to Dukwi Camp by Order of the High Court in 2017.

He further explained that after the government successfully appealed their release, they later fled the Camp to avoid being taken back to the Francistown Centre for Illegal Immigrants and were suspected to be in Zimbabwe and Namibia respectively.

The assistant minister also mentioned that 175 were resettled to the third countries such as Canada, Sweden, Norway and the USA, adding that 75 had been granted mandate status by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and were released to Dukwi Camp while 42 remained at Francistown Centre for Illegal Immigrants.

Mr Shamukuni stated that during the financial year 2018/2019, an amount of P1.2 million was warranted to Dukwi Refugee Camp and as at February 13, 2019 expenditure stood at P799 990.

Mr Reatile had asked the minister to state the annual expenditure of the Dukwi Refugee Camp and the Francistown Centre for illegal immigrants.

He also wanted Mr Shamukuni to state how many asylum seeking applicants had been received in the past five years and how many were granted and how many were denied asylum. ENDS