United Nations Radio

The UN refugee agency-UNHCR and the Afghan Government on Wednesday pledged to strengthen efforts for returnees and displaced people within the Afghanistan national development Strategy.

At an International Conference on Return and Reintegration of Afghan Refugees in Kabul, High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres says the agency will continue to work closely with its counterparts in the region to ensure that return takes place in safety and dignity.

And Afghan Foreign Minister Rangin Dadfar Spanta says the story of Afghanistan's return process marks one of the largest and most successful voluntary repatriation programmes in recent decades.

But he says return alone does not mean success. Rather, it must be followed by successful reintegration, enabled by conditions conducive to social and economic well-being.

Moe than 5 million Afghan refugees -20 per cent of the population- have returned home since 2002.

This is Donn Bobb reporting for United Nations Radio.

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