NAIROBI, April 21 (Xinhua) -- The UN High Commissioner for Refugees is due in Sudan on Monday to spotlight problems in the strife-torn Western region of Darfur, home to a swelling population of internally displaced persons (IDPs).

    In a statement received here Saturday, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said Antonio Guterres will also visit Chadian refugees, and to also spotlight the forgotten situation in the country's east, where Eritreans and Ethiopians have been living in camps for almost 40 years.

    The statement said Guterres who will arrive in Khartoum on Monday is expected to hold talks with senior Sudanese government officials, including Foreign Minister Lam Akol, as well as UN humanitarian staff.

    "UNHCR has been asked by the UN system to expand our operations for the internally displaced in Darfur and Guterres will be looking into this issue during his talks with Sudanese officials," it said.

    The trip, the second to Africa's largest country by Guterres, will take him to El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state on Tuesday to meet IDPs, local authorities, African Union (AU)officials and staff from UN partner agencies and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).

    The UN is trying to expand its operations in Darfur, where clashes between government forces, allied Janjaweed militias and rebel groups have killed more than 200,000 people since 2003 and displaced another 2 million from their homes.

    "On Wednesday, the High Commissioner will meet with Chadian refugees who have fled to West Darfur. We estimate there are a total of 25,000 Chadian refugees now in West Darfur, most of them in areas adjacent to the border," the statement said. It said Guterres is set to then travel to eastern Sudan's Kassala state on Thursday to visit Kilo 26 and Wad Sherife, two camps for Eritrean and Ethiopian refugees.

    Eastern Sudan is home to about 136,000 refugees and there have been camps in that part of the country since 1968, but the situation there is largely forgotten because of the better-known refugee situations of Darfur and southern Sudan.

    The UN refugee agency is shifting its activities in eastern Sudan from providing assistance to devising durable solutions, focusing on local integration as voluntary repatriation is not currently an option. Resettlement is also being considered for special cases.

    "UNHCR is currently working with its government counterparts to guarantee such solutions are found, with focus on local integration, increased self-reliance and facilitating resettlement for special cases. Voluntary repatriation is no option for the time being," said the statement.