Ouagadougou – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Burkina Faso, in collaboration with the Government of Burkina Faso, welcomed 59 Burkinabe returning from Douala, Cameroon, at the International Airport in Ouagadougou on the evening of September 12^th, 2019.

The passengers were all survivors of the shipwreck of a boat from Cotonou, Benin, during the night of July 29^th to 30^th, 2019 near Ebodje, off Kribi, Cameroon. The 117 people on board, including Burkinabe (59), Ghanaian (32) and Togolese (26) nationalities, were stranded on the high seas as they ran out of fuel.

An emergency response had been provided by Cameroonian local and administrative authorities as well as local communities to enable destitute migrants stranded in the country to have access to basic services.

Following a request from the Honorary Consulate of Burkina Faso to IOM Cameroon, and due to the absence of any other possible funding source to assist them, the stranded survivors who could not cover their return-related costs received voluntary return assistance. Migrants from Togo and Burkina Faso returned home on September 12^th on an Air Burkina charter flight arranged by IOM under the Regional Direct Assistance Fund (RDAF) of the EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration.

The RDAF established in 2019 by IOM is a flexible and timely tool to address urgent and unforeseen protection and assistance needs of migrants stranded along migration routes in West and Central Africa and who originate from within the region.

“While the media tend to cover exclusively African migration to Europe, our data reveal that more than 70% of migrants move within the West African region,” said Andreas De Boer, Programme Officer at IOM Burkina Faso. “These migrants face great vulnerability in the region. Return and reintegration assistance is essential to give them the possibility of making a new departure in their lives, and we commend the Government of Burkina Faso on its great commitment to addressing this issue,” he concluded.

The RDAF support includes the transport of survivors of the shipwreck off Kribi, near Ebodje and their temporary accommodation in Cameroon, medical and food assistance as well as assisted voluntary return to their countries of origin. Reintegration assistance as well as medical, social and psychosocial support will be provided to Burkinabe returnees, including the most vulnerable returnees such as minors who will be assisted by UNICEF and Action sociale.

The EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa and implemented by IOM was launched in 2017 in 13 countries in West and Central Africa to assist migrants stranded along migration routes, including the Mediterranean routes.

For more information, please contact Andreas De Boer, at IOM Burkina Faso, Tel: +226 74 93 81 28; Email: adeboer@iom.int.