Senior Multimedia Reporter
radhica.sookraj@guardian.co.tt
With an estimated 122 million refugees globally, and US$26 million being pumped to help asylum seekers and refugees in T&T, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is shutting its doors in August, impacting 39 employees and 25,000 asylum seekers.
The decision comes as the UNHCR faces global funding issues and is now seeking to forge partnerships internationally to help refugees and asylum seekers.
Responding to the developments, coordinator of the La Romain Migrant Support Group (LARMS) Angie Ramnarine said the closure of the UNHCR will deepen the marginalisation of migrant populations who depend on the organisation for refugee status. She warned that with rising instability in Venezuela and mass deportations from the United States under the Donald Trump administration, T&T could soon see a new wave of asylum seekers, refugees and migrants.
Saying humanitarian responses need to be treated as global priorities, Ramnarine said, “It’s a sad thing, actually, that offices that have to deal with migrants are being closed... I would put the issue of asylum and refugee seekers as a global problem, right up there with global warming and climate change.”
She noted that LARMS was mindful of funding constraints and had been preparing for such cuts for more than a year.
Ramnarine, who has worked with migrants in southern Trinidad, said many of them never truly accessed support from the UNHCR.
“Basically, the UNHCR was another office bureaucracy located in the north that was not always accessible to many,” she said.
“People living in the deep south used to tell me that it used to cost them a lot of transportation to go up to the UNHCR to seek help, sometimes $400 a day they would spend in transport, with very little results to show for it.”
She added that while “one or two of them have benefited in terms of surgeries, medical, and they said they got significant help,” most found the system difficult to navigate and unresponsive to their real needs.
“We had hotlines so migrants could access information, but these things never worked. It’s hard to get on to people,” she said.
However, she said UNHCR’s departure underscores a wider issue of accessibility and accountability.
“I hope that new agencies earmarked to supplant the UNHCR will be more accessible to migrants,” Ramnarine said.
She added: “I feel there will be a resurgence given what is happening in Venezuela now and given what is in US with mass deportations.
“We will again feel the pressures of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. We have a serious problem and we actually see how much these agencies can do.”
Meanwhile, Guardian Media spoke to several migrants who had received assistance from the UNHCR.
Migrant Catherina Valderry said through the UNHCR and Living Waters Community, her children received access to online classes at a childcare centre.
“They helped me with food and education. I had no problem with them,” Valderry said.
In the Cedrios area, migrant Maria Conquina said they received solar lights and blankets from the UNHCR.
“We had a tank for water and help with food,” Conquina added.
Cedros councillor Shankar Teelucksingh revealed that the UNHCR also helped dozens of migrants with education, online schooling with devices, food hampers, as well as assistance in registering them.
However, a source who requested anonymity said problems at the UNHCR started in December 2023, when the UNHCR ended
its programme agreement with Living Waters and diverted its funds to the Caribbean Centre for Human Rights (CCHR).
The source criticised the UNHCR’s role in immigration matters.
“Deportation orders issued against undocumented persons, including those convicted of serious criminal offences, were often obstructed by last-minute claims to refugee status,” the source said.
“The funding targeted Venezuelan migrants, causing a clear disparity and unfair distribution of resources to the other 34 countries from which migrants came and resided,” the source added.
2 critical officers to remain in PoS
Responding to questions from Guardian Media, communications associate at the UN Refugee Agency Kalifa Clyne said about 39 UNHCR staff and 25,000 asylum seekers will be directly affected by the closure of the UNHCR office in Port-of-Spain in August due to global funding constraints.
While most local positions will be discontinued, Clyne said two critical roles will remain, supported by staff outpost from the Panama Multi Country Office.
Asked how much funding was given to T&T, Clyne revealed that between 2020 and 2024, UNHCR received and implemented US$26 million in projects in Trinidad and Tobago. This included partnerships that provided essential services—such as asylum registration, legal assistance, and psychosocial support—to refugees and asylum seekers.
Clyne said the UNHCR will “work closely with national authorities and local partners to ensure that the rights of refugees and asylum-seekers are upheld” even after the office closure on August 31.
To address future funding vulnerabilities, she said the UNHCR was “actively diversifying its funding base” by forging new partnerships with private sector and philanthropic foundations, and collaborating with international financial institutions to integrate refugee needs into broader developmental agendas.”
Despite these efforts, Clyne said the global funding environment remains tight. Noted that there are over 122 million refugees globally, she said, “This highlights the urgent need for more predictable, long-term support and greater responsibility-sharing across the international community,” she added.
IOM: Funding issues impacting efforts
Meanwhile, in a statement, the International Organisation for Migrants (IOM), said: “The reduction in US funding and termination of some foreign assistance programmes are impacting humanitarian efforts in Trinidad and Tobago, particularly assistance for supporting the needs of vulnerable migrants, including critical services such as emergency direct assistance, psychosocial support, shelter assistance, livelihood programming and resettlement assistance.”
The IOM noted: “We continue to assess the full impact in coordination with partners and remain committed to delivering technical assistance, capacity building, and support for sustainable migration management in Trinidad and Tobago.”
UN Office of the Resident Coordinator responds
Meanwhile, the United Nations Office of the Resident Coordinator also issued a response saying: “Under the leadership of the UN Resident Coordinator, the UN Country Team comprising of 23 resident and non-resident agencies, will continue collaborating with the Government of Trinidad and Tobago and a wide cross-section of international, regional and national development partners.”
It added: “The UN system, alongside the reduced presence of UNHCR, will work closely with national authorities and local partners to ensure that the rights of refugees and asylum-seekers are upheld.”
The UN Resident Coordinator Office also stated that it will continue to advocate for the establishment of a national asylum system, emphasising the importance of international cooperation, multilateralism and T&T’s commitment to the implementation of international law.