Migration Response Centres (MRCs) East and Horn of Africa (1 January – 31 May 2021)
REGIONAL OVERVIEW: MAY 2021
A total of 711 migrants were registered at MRCs across the region in May, a 9% decrease compared to April. This brings the total registrations in 2021 to 3,460 migrants. The largest number of migrants were registered in Bossaso (308), followed by Obock (182), Hargeisa (73), Togochale (49), Moyale (44), Semera (34), Metema (15), and Dire Dawa (6). The Dire Dawa MRC in Ethiopia resumed operations in May 2021 after more than a year of disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
More male adults (66%) were registered in May than female adults (13%), while 22% of registrations were children. Child registrations increased slightly by 6% between April (145) and May (154). Most registered children (69%) were between 15 and 17 years old.
Around 40% of all child migrants visited the MRC in Bossaso, followed by Hargeisa (27%) and Obock (23%). While all the children registered at the MRCs in Hargeisa and Dire Dawa were accompanied, all the children registered in Bossaso, Togochale, Moyale and Semera as well as most children registered at the MRC in Obock (94%) were unaccompanied.
Almost all registered migrants were Ethiopian nationals (99.6%), and the majority reported departing from the Oromia (41%) and Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ (13%) regions of Ethiopia. Some migrants were also returning from Yemen, in particular from Aden (17%) and Marib (3%). About 45% of migrants reported that they intended to continue their journey to Saudi Arabia, most of whom were registered in Semera (85%) and Bossaso (83%). Meanwhile, 95% of all migrants registered at the MRC in Moyale were heading to South Africa. Overall, most migrants reported migrating for economic reasons (73%).
Source: International Organization for Migration