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95. UNHCR's assistance in 1977 to returning refugees and displaced persons in Angola followed a pattern similar to that of the previous year. It included ti provision of essential items such as agricultural implements, seeds and roofing materials to facilitate reinstallation, as well as substantial relief supplies to meet immediate needs. By the end of 1977, some 38,000 tons of food had been pledged, including substantial supplies from the World Food Programme (WFP) stocks and from the European Economic Community. Other relief items provided in 1977 included blankets, cloth and domestic utensils. In view of difficulties in communications within the country, substantial assistance was also required to facilitate the transportation of both people and supplies. Expenditures by UNHCR in 1977 for the purposes of this Special Programme totalled some $12.1 million.
96. Another major development in 1977, requiring substantial assistance under UNHCR's General Programmes, was the sudden influx, reported in May by the Government of Angola, of over 200,000 Zairian refugees from the Shaba province of Zaire arriving in the Angolan provinces of Lunda and Mexico where living conditions were already extremely difficult as a result of the severe damage suffered prior to independence. In consultation with the Angolan authorities, two fact-finding missions took place in order to assess priority needs of the refugees. These were followed by an airlift of food and other relief supplies by UNHCR, in co-operation with the League of Red Cross Societies, the Swedish Government and the Angolan authorities.
97. In view of the extreme hardship prevailing in the area and the continuing influx of large numbers of refugees from Zaire, further emergency assistance on a substantial scale was required throughout the period under review. It included further supplies of food, medicine, medical equipment, blankets, clothing, cooking utensils, soap and other basic items. Assistance measures planned for a second phase would also include provision of agricultural implements, seeds and building material and the construction of simple dispensaries and health centres.
98. Other assistance under UNHCR's General Programme in Angola in 1977 included medical care for some 20,000 needy Namibian refugees, which was provided in consultation with the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO). It involved the supply of medicaments and equipment for a hospital in the Cassinga region.
99. Expenditures under UNHCR's General Programme for assistance in Angola in 1977 totalled some $2.4 million including $500,000 from the Emergency Fund. This included $2,014,000 for assistance to Zairian refugees, of which $500,000 were drawn from the Emergency Fund. The relief supplies thus provided by UNHCR were supplemented by large-scale contributions of food and other commodities from World Food Programme stocks, by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other sources. An amount of $300,000 was expended for assistance to other refugees in Angola, mainly Namibians.
3. Djibouti
100. In July 1977, the Government of Djibouti requested UNHCR to assist in meeting the needs of refugees from Ethiopia who had started to arrive in the Republic of Djibouti shortly before independence. There were at the time some 4,300 refugees, most of whom were accommodated in two camps, Dikhil and Ali-Sabieh, while about 1,000 were living in the capital. By 31 December 1977 their number had increased to 9,000 and the influx was still continuing.
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