Even though I’m the food security policy advisor for Catholic Relief Services, I have never been to a refugee camp or seen a food emergency–until today.
The occasion was to accompany Ambassador Tony Hall as part of a delegation visiting the Dadaab Refugee Camp in Northeast Kenya near the border with Somalia. Tony Hall is champion in the fight against hunger. He currently heads up the US Alliance to End Hunger, a US advocacy group in Washington, DC. He is also the former chairman of the US House Select Committee on Hunger as well as the Ambassador for the World Food Program and FAO under Bill Clinton.
The first thing that struck me as our WFP plane landed on an airstrip just outside the camp was how dry and unforgiving the terrain was. Later, as we flew back to Nairobi after our visit, there were fewer clouds; as we rose higher all I could see from the sky was an endless expanse of desert scrub, flat as a table with absolutely no water in sight. That is the terrain the refugees walk through to get to the camp, many for 30 to even 60 days, depending on where they started in neighboring Somalia.
We heard stories from new arrivals who told us they lost everything, traveling with their families, but leaving many more behind (we heard that about 70 percent of those entering the camp are women and children). You could see the weariness on their faces, and just the few words of their responses to our questions made me think that each person could write a whole tragic book. However, the bright spot was that they made it to the camp. What follows upon arrival is a well-orchestrated initial assessment and treatment process, registration, and placement in one of Dadaab’s three camps. Refugees are interviewed, screened, and processed. This is also where they receive food, medical treatment, shelter, kitchen kits, and other non-food items that make life more bearable.
It is difficult to fathom the incredible walking journey many of these people take, often being attacked by bandits who rob them of what little they have. Sexual assault along the way is extremely common. Along with the severe hunger suffered by everyone, especially the children, I was also struck by the fact that everyone waiting to be processed in the reception areas we visited had only the clothes on their backs. They were completely without possessions. Nothing. Not even containers for water for their trek through the desert.
CRS is one of many non-governmental organizations working in the camp, run by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. We recently sent a team to do an assessment of need looking for gaps in services. Based on the assessment, our team immediately started making arrangements for supplies.
CRS is in the process of setting up services to deliver 20,000 hygiene kits and is hoping to launch a massive effort to provide sanitation services including latrines and washing facilities for camps serving new arrivals. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees staff working at the camp, Dadaab was designed for 90,000 refugees. So far, there are 400,000 with 1,500* new arrivals each day. It is predicted that the number of new arrivals will be steady and actually increase as the drought persists. Many of Dadaab’s refugees are pastoralists who lost all their livestock, so they have nothing to return to.
Motivation for making the long trek to Dadaab falls into two categories: fleeing the violence of the war in Somalia and total loss of crops or livestock from the drought. Most suffer from both. One man we talked to lost everything and came to Dadaab with his wife and five children. I asked him about his hopes and he said he looks forward to living in peace. The village he’s from was controlled by Al Shabaab.
We are also working in the surrounding host community. Because of the international standards for refugees and camp management, people in Dadaab can end up enjoying more services than Kenyans living in the surrounding area. For this reason, CRS is going out to villages asking about local needs. We are developing programs in host communities near the camp to help people earn money through various livelihood activities and other programs to lower the tension between camp inhabitants and their Kenyan neighbors.
So, at the end, in the face of all the tragedy, I also saw rays of hope. I was so impressed with our field staff who just hit the ground running. By the way, at this point, CRS staff are living in the same types of UNHCR tents as the refugees. It makes me proud of the organization I work for.
I also found rays of hope in the refugees themselves, who demonstrate the power of the human spirit. After an arduous journey that is beyond my imagination, I saw one baby with clear signs of advanced malnutrition in the arms of his mother. He still had the mischievous spark and smiled slyly as he poked his big brother when we were looking. It immediately reminded me of my kids. I’m glad they made it to the camp. Hopefully, the worst is behind them.
*Latest August figure. Previously 1,300.
Bruce White is a Catholic Relief Services food security policy advisor based in Baltimore, Maryland.
