ISLAMABAD, FEB 01 (DNA)  – US Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees and Migration Nancy Izzo Jackson Thursday said the United States would continue to provide humanitarian assistance to all refugees hosting countries, including Pakistan.

Besides it would make sincere efforts to create an environment in Afghanistan conducive to volunteer repatriation of Afghan refugees, she told a select gathering of journalists here at the US embassy while expressing her inability to give any time frame for their honourable and safe return.

She said that Pakistan would not be left alone in its efforts to provide security, food and shelter to the Afghan refugees and America had asked the World Bank to create a new facility to be participated by other countries to meet the requirements of the refugees. Pakistan is eligible to avail this facility.

She said that some 2.9 billion dollars had been provided by her government as humanitarian assistance for the refugees since 2002 and 214 million dollars were spent under that head in 2017.

During her ongoing visit to Pakistan, Nancy Jackson held discussions with Federal Minister for States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) Lieutenant General (R) Abdul Qadir Baloch, Chief of General Staff General Bilal Akbar, and other senior officials at the ministries of Foreign Affairs and Interior, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). She also met Afghan Ambassador to Pakistan Dr. Omar Zakhilwal.

She recognized Pakistan’s generosity for hosting one of the largest, most-protracted refugee populations in the world for nearly 40 years. She encouraged the Government of Pakistan to work with UNHCR and the Afghan government on a plan that supported voluntary, sustainable, and dignified repatriation of Afghan refugees.

Nancy, a career member of the Senior Executive Service, scheduled to leave for Afghanistan on Saturday, said that she had earlier visited Pakistan from May 31 to June 3 last year. Responding to a query, she said that hosting refugees for four decades was quite a long period but refugees should not be considered as security threat.

She was of the view that all the refugees should not be punished for the misdeeds of the few. She said that Pakistan was eager to repatriate the Afghan refugees and she was happy to note that the Pakistan’s cabinet had extended tenure of the Proof of Registration cards for another two months.

As the largest single-country contributor for humanitarian assistance in Pakistan and the region, she said, since 2002 the United States had provided, through the UNHCR and other partners, nearly $2.9 billion to support Afghan refugees, returnees, affected Afghan population, and the Pakistani communities and others who hosted them. The US was keen to have stability in Afghanistan and making sincere efforts to carry out development there to help safe and voluntary return of the refugees, she added.