Zambian and Angolan interior ministers on Tuesday were holding talks to try to clear obstacles in the way of allowing about 40 000 refugees from Angola to return home, an official said.
Zambia is sheltering close to 200 000 Angolan refugees, the highest number of Angolans living outside their country.
Only 3 000 Angolans have returned home since a United Nations-coordinated programme was launched last month.
”We are concerned with the slow process the exercise is taking,” said Zambia’s Home Affairs Permanent Secretary Peter Mumba.
Zambia is concerned that, at the current pace, it will be difficult to meet the objective of helping 40 000 Angolans return to their country by the end of 2004.
At the meeting organised by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the ministers and other senior government officials are to discuss chartering planes to fly refugees back home as travel by road is proving to be very slow, Mumba said.
Heavy rains causing flooding of roads and landmines have impeded refugee return, causing the programme to be temporarily halted last year.
Refugee return from Zambia only resumed last month after the roads were cleared and declared safe. — Sapa-AFP