United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has planned to help repatriate 150,000 Afghan refugee from Pakistan during this year.

Pakistan continues to host about 1.7 million refugees. Most of them are from Afghanistan and live in refugee villages and urban areas. Since March 2002, the UNHCR has facilitated the return of some 3.7 million registered Afghans from Pakistan.

According to UNHCR here on Sunday, it has established four Voluntary Repatriation Centers (VRCs) in Pakistan to help as many Afghans return home as possible. These remain operational throughout the year.

Afghan refugees in Pakistan are well aware of conditions back in their home communities through their networks of friends and family and a decision to return is usually only taken after weeks of discussions.

According to a decision, all Afghan refugees will be repatriated after 2012 as their Proof of Registration Cards will expire by the end of this year. Pakistan’s Ministry of States and Frontier Regions, which also deals with the Afghan refugees, and the UNHCR have planned to implement a new solutions strategy, aimed at supporting the repatriation of 1.7 million documented Afghan refugees in Pakistan.

In 2011, about 70,000 Afghan refugees returned home. Meanwhile, Ministry of States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have planned to implement a new solutions strategy, aimed at supporting repatriation of 1.7 million documented Afghan refugees in Pakistan.

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