Yaoundé – On 6 April 2023, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) accompanied the Government of Cameroon in the reception of 63 Cameroonians from Tunisia.

This operation follows an instruction of the Cameroon Head of State on the voluntary repatriation of Cameroonians residing in Tunisia wishing to return to their country, after the social crisis that emerged after the announcement of the Tunisian President on February 21, 2023, on urgent measures to combat illegal immigration of nationals of sub-Saharan Africa.

63 people from the 72 Cameroonians registered by the Embassy of Cameroon in Tunisia as part of the voluntary return, left Tunisia by a Royal Air Morocco flight chartered by the Cameroonian government on April 5, 2023 at 5:55 pm and landed at Yaoundé-Nsimalen airport on April 6, 2023 approximately 4 hours after a stopover in Casablanca, Morocco. Among the workforce are 7 women and 56 men among whom were four (04) minors including 2 unaccompanied.

"Finally, I am in my country, here I know that I am calm... Long live Cameroon," a migrant said on arriver.

IOM Cameroon's assistance is in line with the organization's position which, in a global statement issued on 8 March 2023 on the situation of migrants in Tunisia, stated that "IOM stands ready to continue working with national and regional partners to translate the government's commitments into concrete actions to improve governance. migration and migrant support services".

After passing the administrative formalities at the airport, the returnees were taken to the temporary reception site for returning migrants in Yaoundé, thanks to the means of transport provided by the IOM Mission in Cameroon. During their short stay at the reception site, returnees benefited from amenities provided by IOM such as toiletries, breakfast, refreshments and food kits for the children. The Organization also took the opportunity to support the host site in terms of maintenance equipment. During their visit to the reception site, the returnees had preliminary interviews with IOM staff to obtain some overall information on their conditions of return.

IOM will conduct in the coming days a more in-depth assessment of the situation of each returnee to determine the eligibility of each for possible reintegration support, based on the vulnerabilities identified.

IOM's interventions in Returns, read mission and Reintegration have increased with the implementation since November 2017 of the EU-IOM Joint Initiative for the Protection and Reintegration of Migrants funded by the European Union, the latest phase of which was closed in January 2023. The implementation of this initiative has benefited from the support of the Cameroonian government, particularly through the Ministry of External Relations (MINREX) and a number of other technical ministries. Today, IOM is committed to continuing to support the Government in providing assistance to migrants, with respect for their dignity and human rights, in order to achieve the goal of a mutually beneficial migration.

For more information:

Pascale Essama, IOM Cameroon, pessama@iom.int, Tel: +237 657 10 30 74