UN High Commissioner for Refugees visits Egypt to discuss cooperation amid Sudanese crisis

CAIRO – 28 May 2023: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, arrived in Egypt on an official three-day visit from May 27 to May 29 to highlight the needs of people fleeing the conflict in Sudan and crossing to Egypt for safety.

The visit is also aimed at mobilizing support to Egypt where the largest number of people fleeing Sudan had arrived so far, as indicated in a press statement.

During his visit, Grandi will travel to the Qustol border area. He will also meet with the Egyptian president, the Secretary General of the League of Arab States, other ministers, as well as refugees who have newly arrived in Egypt.

The UN official had met last week with Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shokry who has been on a visit to Geneva to hold talks on cooperation with chiefs of multiple UN agencies, particularly support to Egypt's efforts on the front of hosting refugees and migrants whose number amounts to nine million.

UNHCR signed earlier in May a partnership agreement with the Egyptian Red Crescent (ERC) worth LE38 million, which aims to provide humanitarian assistance to people crossing the border from Sudan.

The agreement is a top-up to the LE15 million worth of in-kind support provided by UNHCR since the outbreak of the crisis on the Egyptian border.

Under this partnership, UNHCR will provide the Egyptian Red Crescent with more than two million bottles of water as well as hygiene and sanitary kit sufficient for 150,000 individuals crossing the border, including Sudanese, Egyptians and other nationalities.

UNHCR will also cover the transportation expenses from the border to Aswan or other governorates for vulnerable cases. In addition, UNHCR allocated a budget to ERC to provide support to urgent medical cases who suffer from chronic diseases or have recently faced medical issues as a consequence of the long trip between Sudan and Egypt.