Press Briefing by UNHCR

Sadako Ogata, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), indicates that the number of refugees has continued to grow relentlessly in the post-Cold War era, and that there are an estimated 19.7 million refugees today. She believes that addressing refugee problems is essential for human rights as well as global and regional peace and stability. And she introduces the first comprehensive public report by UNHCR, “The State of The World’s Refugees 1993: The Challenge of Protection”, which shows the analyses of the challenges of solving refugee problems. Ms. Ogata also emphasizes that UNHCR must link up more closely with political initiatives and development assistance for solutions to and prevention of refugee problems.