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UNHCR Completed a Regional Training on Refugee Status Determination

A comprehensive training workshop on Refugee Status Determination (RSD) was organized by UNHCR Regional Office for Central Asia in Viluuis, Lithuania, from 19 to 23 November 2012. The event gathered more than 30 government officials from the Republic of Belarus, Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Republic of Lithuania, Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and the Russian Federation. The main goal of the workshop was to provide RSD experts of state bodies with advanced knowledge, tools and techniques and to organize a platform for discussion/sharing information on best practices in the region in order to promote inter-state cooperation on refugee related matters.

This workshop marked the completion of the 6-month Self-Study Module on Refugee Status Determination, conducted for the state officials, NGOs and other practitioners in the area of refugee law.

One of the judges, who took part in the workshop, underlined: «I believe the training was very useful for judges, who consider asylum claims from rejected asylum-seekers. I suggest that more judges from the region are included to the next similar workshops. The knowledge received during the workshop will help improve the quality of the court judgments on asylum claims».

Another participant underlined that the workshop was excellent and a lot of new and useful information was received by the participants. It also allowed meeting of experienced professionals from different countries, sharing views and establishing networks for future regional collaboration.

Within the framework of the workshop, participants also took part in a Study Tour which was organized jointly with the Migration Department under the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania. Participants visited a Day Assistance Centre for refugees and asylum-seekers.