By Rex Mphisa
THE United Nations has praised Zimbabwe and its partners for their facilitatory role bringing returnees home from South Africa saying their dignity must be upheld.
Zimbabwe needs now to step up its operations to match the demands of increased volumes of returnees and ride over the challenge, the UN Resident Coordinator Rosemary Kalapurakai said on Thursday.
She made the remarks during her tour of the Beitbridge Reception Centre handling thousands of Zimbabweans forcibly ejected from SA.
Kalapurakai was convinced the Zimbabwean Government was above the situation and diligently and pledged the UN support for the programme.
“What is required now is the additional support needed to match the scale of the challenge. As we carry back home the recognition that every person crossing this border carries not only their few possessions, but also aspirations, capabilities, responsibilities, and hopes for the future, we must mobilize all partners to help invest in practical solutions that can help ensure that every returning Zimbabwean is not only received with dignity and protected from harm, but also given a fair opportunity to rebuild their lives and contribute positively to their communities and to the country’s future,” she said.
She said over the past several weeks, she received reports and attended meetings on the situation affecting Zimbabwean returnees and her visit brought reality, figures and human faces to the tales she heard.
“Standing here in Beitbridge, the trends and numbers take on a very different meaning. They become real people: mothers carrying children, young people worried about opportunity, families returning home with a few bags and many uncertainties about what comes next,” she said.
She was addressing journalists, government workers and their partners involved in different roles to intergrate returnees back to Zimbabwe.
Kalapurakai praised all the workers for a good job she said was impressive. She appealed to the workers to give returnees hope.
“For them (returnees), this border crossing is not simply a point of entry. It is the beginning of a new chapter. Perhaps not one they had planned or hoped for. It is a moment of great vulnerability, but it is also a moment where we can help create hope.
She said accompanying Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe to Beitbridge allowed her to have appreciation of the real situation and decide how ger organisation can work with Zimbabwe on the situation.
“That is why it is so important for us to be here together today.Just a few days ago, Honourable Minister, we met to discuss how the Government of Zimbabwe and the United Nations can strengthen the impact of our work through effective coordination and mobilize the support needed for this response. Today’s visit is therefore not just a photo opportunity but a direct reflection of that shared commitment: to work together, to act with urgency, and to ensure that support reaches people where and when it is needed most.”
“I thank the Government of Zimbabwe for its leadership in providing and coordinating the response. Facilitating the return and reintegration of tens of thousands of your people is a considerable undertaking. It requires commitment, organization, cooperation and coordination across many institutions, both national and local.”
She asked workers to be compassionate and make the reception centre a beacon of hope for the returnees.
She thanked UN agencies and those who support them and gave special mention to IOM, which has had a long-standing multi-sectoral migrant hub in Beitbridge and which has been leading here on this issue, but also of the capacities, resources, supplies and partnerships facilitated by UNICEF, WFP, UNFPA, UN Women, WHO and others.
“We are privileged to be working alongside local authorities, civil society, and private sector, to provide reception and humanitarian assistance; health, nutrition, and water and sanitation services; child protection and documentation; dignity kits; mental health and psychosocial support; and of course, coordination and information management.”
She said health and nutrition services are under pressure, with additional risks for breastfeeding mothers, infants and pregnant returnees.
“Protection concerns remain significant. Families can become separated. People face emotional distress, loss of income, interruptions to medical treatment, and risks of exploitation, abuse, gender-based violence, and harm to children.”
Kalapurakai asked the support of the returnees to be extended to their final destinations and getting them there safely was critical.
She said there was need for sustained investment in livelihoods, social protection, community resilience, and services that can help returnees rebuild their lives with dignity and confidence.
“Today, I am humbled to stand beside you, Honourable Minister, and reiterate a message that needs to resonate well beyond Beitbridge.
To the government of Government of Zimbabwe, let me say thank you: particularly the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works, the Department of Civil Protection, the Department of Social Welfare.”
She said the UN stood with the people of Zimbabwe on their mission to reintergrate its citizens.
She asked the international community to support the country expecting close to two million Zimbabweans from SA which has become hostile to foreigners.
“To the international community, the private sector, civil society, and all development partners: I salute those that have already shown solidarity and action. To everyone else, we must say, Honourable Minister: this is not a moment to observe from the sidelines. The needs are clear. The Government is leading. The United Nations will support these efforts cohesively as one family, working hand in hand with all partners to ensure that our collective efforts have the greatest possible impact to improve people’s lives.”