Refugee Status Determination in Cameroon: Challenges and Prospects
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31150/ajshr.v4i4.2167Keywords:
Cameroon, RSD, UNHCRAbstract
Refugee status determination (RSD) has always been the best means through which the rights of a refugee is formally established in the host country. This process is however within the sovereign powers of the host country to consider who qualifies as a refugee or not. Cameroon has ratified international instruments as well as put in place national mechanisms for determining the status of refugees. Determining the status of refugees can be done by way of individual status determination or collective (group) determination. Irrespective of these mechanisms, the main actor of determining the status of refugees in Cameroon is not the state but the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Though the state is assisted by the UNHCR, the RSD process is affected by factors such as logistics issues, lax of political will and absence of legal assistance to applicants of RSD. It is recommended that for there to be an efficient and effective RSD, the state has to adopt a strong political will in engaging with the RSD process in Cameroon.
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