About 1 mln South Sudanese refugees return home in 5 years: UNHCR

A South Sudanese refugee looks out of a truck before being transported to the recently established Imvepi settlement, at the Imvepi Reception Centre, Arua District, Northern Region, Uganda (UNHCR)

JUBA, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- Some 997,743 refugees have arrived in South Sudan in spontaneous returns from October 2018 to September 2023 after the signing of the revitalized peace agreement on the resolution of conflict, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Tuesday.

According to the UNHCR, 51 percent of the refugees interviewed said they returned to South Sudan because the security situation improves in the country; 41 percent of the returnees said they wanted to reunite with their family members in South Sudan; 26 percent cited the improved availability of services in the country as a reason for returning.

"During the third quarter of 2023, a total of 2,646 households with approximately 12,244 individuals were interviewed in all the 10 states of Upper Nile, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Western Bahr el Ghazal, Lakes, Jonglei, Central Equatoria, Eastern Equatoria, Western Equatoria, Unity, and Warrap states," the UN agency said in its latest survey released in the South Sudanese capital of Juba.

On a quarterly basis, the UNHCR and partners collect information on refugee returns through key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and partner monitoring reports.

In collaboration with the South Sudanese government's Relief and Rehabilitation Commission, the UNHCR verifies the reports by conducting random interviews with selected returnee households in the areas of return.