Around 2.9m Afghans reside in Pakistan: report

Around 74% of the existing refugees are under the age of 25 are residing in Pakistan

Web Desk

Updated 20 Jul, 2024

Pakistan

Afghan refugees gather around National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) vans for biometric verifications as they prepare to depart for Afghanistan, at a holding centre in Landi Kotal on Nov 1. AFP

The Senate Standing Committee on States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) was informed that there are approximately 2.9 million Afghan nationals currently residing in Pakistan.

This population is categorized into two groups - 1.45 million Afghan refugees holding Proof of Registration (PoR) cards, and 0.814 million Afghan nationals holding Afghan Citizen Cards.

The committee, chaired by Senator Jan Muhammad Buledi, reviewed SAFRON’s core responsibilities, which include governing Afghan refugees and facilitating their repatriation, as well as overseeing the former princely states. It was noted that SAFRON has been allocated a budget of Rs978.211 million for the fiscal year 2024-25.

The demographic breakdown presented showed that 74% of the existing refugees are under the age of 25. SAFRON outlined its efforts to promote sustainable repatriation in collaboration with the Afghan government, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and other international partners. Financial assistance for returnees was also highlighted, with UNHCR providing $375 per returnee and $700 per returning family.

The committee was informed that 90% of PoR card-holding Afghan refugees have voluntarily repatriated. However, the international support for refugee management has decreased, with UNHCR’s major funding now channeled through international NGOs.

Senator Dost Mohammad Khan raised concerns about the social, economic, financial, and administrative challenges faced by the merged districts of the former FATA region, stating that these issues have been compounded since the merger.

Additional data presented showed that the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has reported 1,220,034 spontaneous returns of unregistered Afghan individuals as of May 31, 2024, while UNHCR has reported 4,434,231 registered Afghan refugees.

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