No agreement yet on return of refugees from Cameroon-FG

The federal government has said it has not signed a tripartite agreement on the voluntary repatriation of Nigerian refugees from Cameroon as earlier claimed.

The Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau, made this known yesterday in a statement by the ministry’s permanent secretary, Bassey Akpanyung.

The Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency, Sani Sidi, had said last weekend that a Memorandum of Understanding on the return of Nigerian refugees from Cameroon had been signed by Nigeria, Cameroon and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

But the statement said only tripartite talks were held, adding that this is expected to culminate in the eventual signing of an agreement between President Muhammadu Buhari and his Cameroonian counterpart, Paul Biya next month.

It added that Nigeria, Cameroon and UNHCR held the tripartite forum on June 9 to discuss the framework for the voluntary repatriation of Nigerian refugees being hosted by the Cameroonian government.

It is recalled that the federal government and the UNHCR held a Regional Protection Dialogue on the Lake Chad Basin in Abuja from June 6 to 8 with Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon in participation.