Pakistan, Afghanistan agree to follow timeline for refugees return

Published November 8, 2018
Agreement was reached during the second meeting of the Refugee Working Group. — FO/File
Agreement was reached during the second meeting of the Refugee Working Group. — FO/File

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Afghanistan on Wednesday agreed to follow the “decided timeline” for the repatriation of Afghan refugees.

The agreement was reached during the second meeting of the Refugee Working Group (WG) under the Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Stability (APAPPS).

Safron Secretary Muhammad Aslam led the Pakistani side at the meeting whereas the Afghan delegation was headed by Deputy Minister for Afghan Ministry of Refugee Affairs Dr Alema.

Agreement reached during meeting of working group

The two sides discussed ways to enhance mutual cooperation for “a dignified, gradual, time-bound and complete return of Afghan nationals to their country”.

“It was decided to observe the agreed timelines and procedures for repatriation of various categories of these people to Afghanistan,” a Foreign Office statement said.

Although there is no publicly known timeline for repatriation, it is generally believed that Pakistan government wants the Afghan refugees having Afghan citizen cards to be repatriated by December 2018, whereas the registered refugees, who are believed to be 1.4 million, are expected to return to their country by June 2019. There is a third category of undocumented Afghan citizens living in Pakistan for which efforts are being made to register and repatriate them.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had in February pledged to ensure return of all Afghan refugees living in Pakistan to Afghanistan in “the next 24 months”.

The statement further said that a standard operating procedure (SOP) for streamlining the future working of the group among the two ministries concerned on a regular basis was also agreed.

The APAPPS working group (WG), it noted, “works on the principle of direct, regular contact among relevant ministries in both countries, under the umbrella of the politico-diplomatic WG, co-chaired by the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs”.

Published in Dawn, November 8th, 2018

Opinion

Revamping the ecosystem

Revamping the ecosystem

Key to high-quality performance of public sector institutions lies in attracting, retaining and motivating civil servants of high calibre throughout the system.

Editorial

Rain havoc
Updated 19 Jul, 2025

Rain havoc

Thursday’s events must be seen not as an isolated disaster, but as a warning of what lies ahead.
Shattered Strip
19 Jul, 2025

Shattered Strip

THE Gaza siege has now crossed 650 days and the situation continues to take one ugly turn after another. True, even...
Battling drugs
19 Jul, 2025

Battling drugs

PAKISTAN’s war on drug trafficking has been ongoing for several years. But the country remains awash in the ...
Soaring again
Updated 18 Jul, 2025

Soaring again

The lifting of the ban by the UK will lead to several welcome developments.
Terror in Kalat
18 Jul, 2025

Terror in Kalat

THE unrest in Balochistan is increasingly taking on an ugly and dangerous colour, with repeated, indiscriminate...
Economic exclusion
18 Jul, 2025

Economic exclusion

FOR all the progress made in Pakistan towards the inclusion of women across the sociopolitical divide, comprehensive...