The literature on Africa's refugees has grown dramatically over the past decade. Two issues, however, remain relatively unresearched and poorly understood — the plight of urban refugees and the problems associated with repatriation. This article examines the dimensions of the latter. After placing repatriation into the context of contemporary durable solutions applied to the African refugee dilemma, the article examines some of the problems, concerns and frustrations associated with African repatriation exercises in terms of cultural, economic and political obstacles encountered in the process of repatriation and the concomitant rehabilitation of refugees in their areas of origin. The article is illustrated with examples drawn from the Southern Sudanese repatriation of the early 1970s.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AdepojuA.1987 “The Dimensions of the Refugee Problem in Africa”, African Affairs.81(322):21–35.
2.
Aga KahnS.1971 “One Million Refugees in Africa”, Migration News.4:3–12.
3.
AitchisonR.1985 “Repatriating Refugees to Ethiopia: A Model Calling for Assessment”. In World Refugee Survey 1984.Washington, DC: U.S. Committee for Refugees. Pp. 44–45.
4.
AkolJ.O.1987 “Southern Sudanese Refugees: Their Repatriation and Resettlement after the Addis Ababa Agreement”. In Refugees: A Third World Dilemma. Edited by RoggeJ.R.Totowa, NJ: Rowman and Allenheld. Pp. 143–158.
5.
AkolJ.O.1986 “Migration and Repatriation: Case Studies of Some Affected Rural Communities in Southern Sudan”. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation. University of Manitoba, Winnipeg.
6.
BettsT.F.1984 “Evolution and Promotion of the Integrated Rural Development Approach to Refugee Policy in Africa”, Africa Today.31(1):7–24.
7.
ChambersR.1979 “Rural Refugees in Africa: What the Eye Does Not See”, Disasters.3(4):381–392.
8.
ClarkD.L. and SteinB.1984 “Documentary Note: The Relationship Between ICARA II and Refugee Aid and Development”. Washington, DC: Refugee Policy Group.
9.
CrispJ.F.1984a “The Politics of Repatriation: Ethiopian Refugees in Djibouti, 1977–83”, Review of African Political Economy.30:73–82.
10.
CrispJ.F.1984b “Voluntary Repatriation Programmes for African Refugees: A Critical Examination”, Refugee Issues.1(2):23.
11.
GasarasiC.1984 “The Tripartite Approach to the Resettlement and Integration of Refugees in Tanzania”, Research Report No. 71. Uppsala: Scandinavian Institute of African Studies.
12.
GouldW.T.S.1974 “Refugees in Tropical Africa”, International Migration Review.8(3):413–430.
13.
HansenA.1981 “Refugee Dynamics: Angolans in Zambia, 1966–1972”, International Migration Review.15(1):175–194.
14.
Harrell-BondB.E.1986Imposing Aid: Emergency Assistance to Refugees.Oxford: Oxford University Press.
15.
JandaC.1986 “Regional Solutions on Protection and Asylum”, Oikaumene. 77E:4–8.
16.
KaradawiA.1983 “Constraints on Assistance to Refugees: Some Observations from Sudan”, World Development.11(6):537–547.
17.
KibreabG.1985African Refugees: Reflections on the Africa Refugee Problem.Trenton, NJ: African World Press.
18.
NelderB.W.1979 “Settlement of Rural Refugees in Africa”, Disasters.3(4):393–402.
19.
NyerereJ.1979Opening address at the OAU Conference on the Situation of Refugees in Africa, UN General Assembly Report on the Conference on the Situation of Refugees in Africa. Geneva: UNO.
20.
PittermanS.1984 “A Comparative Survey of Two Decades of International Assistance to Refugees in Africa”, Africa Today.31(11):25–26.
21.
PottenD.1976 “Etsha: A Successful Resettlement Scheme”, Botswana Notes and Records. 8:105–119.
22.
Repatriation and Resettlement Commission1973Interim Report on the First Phase of Repatriation, Relief and Rehabilitation. Juba: Government of the Southern Region of Sudan.
23.
RoggeJ.R.1985Too Many, Too Long: Sudan's Twenty Year Refugee Dilemma.Totowa, NJ: Rowman and Allenheld.
24.
RoggeJ.R.1981 “Africa's Resettlement Strategies”, International Migration Review.15(1):195–212.
25.
RoggeJ.R.1977 “A Geography of Refugees: Some Illustrations from Africa”, Professional Geographer.29(2):186–193.
26.
RubinN.1974 “Africa and Refugees”, African Affairs.73(292):290–311.
27.
SteinB.1981Refugees and Economic Activities in Africa. Report to the US Agency for International Development.
28.
TerrillC.1983 “The Creation of the Acholi Minority of the Southern Sudan: Their Dispersal as Refugees, Repatriation, and Resettlement”. Paper read at the Symposium on the Problem and Consequences of Refugee Migrations in the Developing World, Hecla Island, Manitoba.
29.
UNHCR1986Report on UNHCR Assistance in 1985–1986 and Proposed Programmes for 1987. Geneva, UNHCR.
30.
UNHCR1985Report on UNHCR Assistance in 1984–1985 and Proposed Programmes for 1986. Geneva, UNHCR.
31.
UNHCR1982Report on UNHCR Assistance in 1980–1981 and Proposed Programmes for 1982. Geneva, UNHCR.
32.
1969The Promise of M'Boki. Geneva, UNHCR. U.S. Committee for Refugees
33.
1988World Refugee Survey: 1987 in Review. Washington, DC.
