Rwanda welcomes 137 asylum seekers evacuated from Libya

On Wednesday, April 23, Rwanda, in partnership with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), welcomed the 21st group of 137 asylum seekers evacuated from Libya through the Emergency Transit Mechanism (ETM). These individuals were evacuated under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Government of Rwanda, the African Union, and UNHCR. The agreement established the ETM to provide life-saving protection, assistance, and long-term solutions to extremely vulnerable refugees stranded in Libya by temporarily relocating them to Rwanda. The 137 asylum seekers received in this group originate f

On Wednesday, April 23, Rwanda, in partnership with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), welcomed the 21st group of 137 asylum seekers evacuated from Libya through the Emergency Transit Mechanism (ETM). These individuals were evacuated under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Government of Rwanda, the African Union, and UNHCR. The agreement established the ETM to provide life-saving protection, assistance, and long-term solutions to extremely vulnerable refugees stranded in Libya by temporarily relocating them to Rwanda. The 137 asylum seekers received in this group originate from the following countries: 81 from Sudan, 21 from Ethiopia, 14 from Eritrea, and 2 from South Sudan. In 2019, the Government of Rwanda, in collaboration with the African Union, UNHCR, and other partners, launched the ETM to support vulnerable refugees in Libya through temporary evacuation and comprehensive support in Rwanda. Since then, two addendums have been made to the original tripartite MoU. The first, effective from October 2021 to December 2023, increased the center’s hosting capacity to 700 individuals at any given time. The second, signed in January 2024, extended the program until December 31, 2025. The ETM aims to temporarily host asylum seekers who voluntarily evacuate from Libya. While in Rwanda, UNHCR processes their refugee cases to assess their eligibility for durable solutions, primarily resettlement to third countries. According to UNHCR, between September 2019 and mid-December 2024, a total of 2,623 refugees and asylum seekers were evacuated from Libya to the ETM in Rwanda via 20 evacuation flights. These individuals include nationals of Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Cameroon, Nigeria, Mali, and Chad. As of November 30, 2024, a total of 1,952 refugees have been resettled to third countries.