BY ABDULWAHAB ABDULAH & OAMEN AREGUAMEN

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Nigeria, Ms Gogo Hukportie, has said over 80 percent of people displaced by violence across the world were hosted by developing countries, just as she commended the Nigerian governmen for its efforts in maintenance of peace in  West Africa.

Also Ms Hukportie urged political leaders, especially in the developing world, to reflect  on the consequences and implication of their decision and subsequent action on the citizenry.

Speaking further, Ms Hukportie said the major problem facing her commission was the spread of conflicts across the country, especially in Africa, where more conflicts rear their heads when old wound were  yet to heal. This year’s programme is titled, “1 Family Forced to flee Too Much.”

Hukportie noted:   “Today’s chronic conflicts are a cause for special concern. What we see is that as new conflicts flare, old ones are left unresolved. This leads to new displacement on the one hand and millions of people being prevented from returning home, on the other. Fewer than 200,000 refugees went home in 2010, the lowest number in 20 years.”