Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) provided post-arrival assistance to 13,600 returnees from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) in recent months, using funds from King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSRelief). 
The post-arrival assistance was given at the IOM Transit Center and government-run shelter in Addis Ababa from mid-October 2023 to date, with the project coming to an end in mid-October 2024. 

Through this support, the returnees were provided with shelter services and non-food items upon arrival in Addis Ababa, and transportation assistance to reach their hometowns. “Most returnees do not have the means to return home, so we offer this support to ensure they can make their way back to their hometowns safely and in dignity,” says Pekka Marjamäki, IOM Ethiopia’s Return and Reintegration Programme Officer. 

The project contributes to IOM’s efforts to ensure that the needs identified in the Regional Migration Response Plan (MRP) for the Horn of Africa to Yemen and Southern Africa are met through humanitarian, protection, and developmental support .
Despite the Ethiopian government’s significant efforts to address the adverse drivers of irregular migration, thousands of undocumented migrants leave the country annually seeking jobs and livelihoods. The primary routes taken for this migration are the Eastern route to the Gulf States, the Southern route to South Africa, and the Northern route to Europe. Among these, the Eastern route is the most commonly used by Ethiopian migrants. 

Of the 53,894 returnees who received assistance from IOM in Ethiopia in 2023, over 52,000 came from Yemen, Djibouti, Somalia and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This accounts for 97 per cent of all returnees, showing that most assistance focuses on returns from the Eastern route, which leads migrants mainly towards the KSA. Among those assisted in 2023, close to 4,000 were children, while 41,551 were men and 6,572 women. 

In addition to post-arrival support, IOM provides reintegration support when funding allows. In 2023 alone, the Organization supported over 575 returnees with reintegration.  

With more Ethiopians expected to be returned from KSA this year, IOM remains committed to supporting the Government of Ethiopia’s post-arrival response, working with MRP partners in the region.  

Generous funding from the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) has enabled IOM to provide this post-arrival assistance to returnees from Saudi Arabia.

For more information, please contact Alemayehu Seifeselassie, salemayehu@iom.int.