Algeria

2015 UNHCR country operations profile - Algeria

| Overview |

Working environment

• The absence of a national asylum law and functioning body to adjudicate asylum requests in Algeria prompts UNHCR to carry out refugee status determination. Refugees and asylum-seekers do not have access to work, which limits their self-reliance. They are also vulnerable to arrest/ detention, and lack access to some basic rights.

• Developments in the wider region, combined with tighter interception measures and more restrictive asylum policies adopted by countries in the European Union, have increased the number of asylum requests in Algeria, mainly for people seeking refuge from the Syrian Arab Republic (Syria).

• As mixed migratory movements continue, the number of human trafficking victims and unaccompanied minors has increased considerably. In 2015, UNHCR and partners will focus on assisting the most vulnerable of them.

• Although the situation in Mali has not prompted mass population movements into Algeria, a few hundred Malians have settled in a camp at the border managed by the Algerian Red Crescent. Others found refuge with the host population. Regional meetings held in Ouagadougou, Bamako and Niamey in 2013-2014 defined a regional approach to address protection challenges and spontaneous voluntary returns of Malian refugees.

• Sahrawi refugees, who are settled in five camps near Tindouf, are mainly dependent on humanitarian assistance with little prospect for self-reliance, as income-generating activities are scarce. The Government estimates that there are 165,000 refugees in the camps. Pending a registration exercise, UNHCR's assistance programme will continue to be based on a planning figure of 90,000 vulnerable Sahrawi refugees.

• The Government of Algeria continues to provide free access to education and public health care for refugees throughout the country. Security measures are in place for refugees and humanitarian organizations operating in the camps.

People of concern

The main groups of people of concern for UNHCR in Algeria in 2015 are 90,000 vulnerable Saharawi refugees, as well as a growing population of individual refugees and asylum-seekers from sub-Saharan countries, and people who fled the crises in Mali and Syria, living mainly in urban areas.

| Response |

Needs and strategies

In 2015, the main needs to be addressed by UNHCR relate to the provision of international protection and basic assistance and services for vulnerable Sahrawi refugees, as well as for refugees and asylum-seekers in urban areas, mainly Algiers, within the mixed migration context.

The Office will implement a comprehensive strategy aimed at enhancing the asylum space in the country, promoting the adoption and implementation of protection-sensitive management of broader migratory movements. This will be implemented with the relevant national structures and other governmental and non-governmental actors, in line with the UNHCR 10-Point Plan of Action, while also seeking durable solutions for sub-Saharan African refugees such as resettlement to third countries.

| Implementation |

Coordination

The Office will continue its active role as a member of the UN Country Team, and other joint UN processes at national level, including donor mobilization. It will also continue to work in coordination with local authorities and refugee representatives. Joint planning, assessments and coordination with WFP for food and nutritional interventions, as well as technical support, will be enhanced; cooperation with UNICEF in health and education will be reinforced; and coordination with Oxfam to improve shelter and food security will continue.

| Financial information |

Over the past five years, the budget has steadily increased to cater for the growth in mixed migration flows using Algeria as a transit and destination country. More than 4,500 asylum-seekers approached the Office between 2009 and 2013 seeking protection, in the absence of a national asylum system. With regard to the protracted situation of Sahrawi refugees, humanitarian aid continues to be necessary as there are few economic opportunities for self-reliance measures.

In 2015, the comprehensive needs of refugees and asylum-seekers in Algeria are estimated at USD 33.2 million.

Source: UNHCR Global Appeal 2015 Update

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