Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Home Affairs Minister Steven Kampyongo says influx of asylum seekers from the Democratic Republic of Congo has triggered a humanitarian emergency in the country.
Mr Kampyongo has told Parliament in a ministerial statement that 3,700 asylum seekers have been registered since August, 2017.
He says the number of Congolese refugees who have entered Zambia since January, 2017 has since risen to over 6,100, the highest number of refugees to enter the country over the past 5 years.
Mr Kampyongo states that the total number of Congolese refugees in Zambia has now increased by about 30,000 in total.
He adds that these together with refugees from Burundi, Somalia and other countries as well as former refugees from Angola and Rwanda bring the total number of persons of concern in the country to over 60,000.
Mr Kampyongo has attributed the influx of Congolese asylum seekers to instability in that country arising largely from the protracted governance crisis owing to the failure to hold presidential and general elections on schedule.