| Ethiopian migrants board a plane to go back home after being unable to get into Saudi Arabia. |
HODEIDA, 12 Dec. — A group of Ethiopian migrants were voluntarily transported from Hodeida Port to Addis Ababa on Wednesday after spending several months stuck in Harad. Unable to cross the Saudi border, their intended destination, the 216 Ethiopian nationals asked the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to help them return to their native country.
Saba Al-Ma’alimi, an operations manager at the IOM, said the organization worked with the Ethiopian Embassy and the Migration and Passport Authority to issue the departure documents.
The majority of the returnees are women, children and the elderly who entered Yemen illegally.
This is the second time this month that IOM has assisted an Ethiopian migrant group to voluntarily return home. Another trip is planned for December 18. Around 3,000 migrants are currently at IOM's headquarters in Harad according to the organization.
Al-Ma’alimi explained that the group of migrants opted to go back home because of the dire living conditions they faced, including an inability to obtain adequate housing.
He added that the group of Ethiopians were trying to move by foot to Saudi Arabia, a common tale for African migrants who seek to live in the Gulf country for job opportunities. However, strict security procedures at the border, prevented them from leaving Yemen.
Brigadier Mohammed Ahmed Al-Makaleh, the security manager of Hodeida governorate, said the security offices facilitated the Hodeida Port departure.
“They must sleep on the street and resort to begging. They also have resorted to thievery to feed themselves,” Al-Makaleh said of the impoverished situation migrants face.
Mustafa Nasser, an economic analyst, said Ethiopia has the highest number of illegal migrants in Yemen.
He said the total number of African migrants to come to Yemen this year, has risen to 72,000 - a little over 57,000 of those are from Ethiopia.
According to his predictions this trend will only increase in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden regions.
www.yementimes.com
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