* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Nairobi - The Lutheran World Federation (LWF), who manages (the three) two large refugee camps in Eastern Africa and operates programs in several more, found little to celebrate today noting that resources to most refugees in the region were inadequate to meet the current level of need.
Lennart Hernander, the Country Representative for LWF in Kenya and Djibouti said the Dadaab, Kakuma and Ali Addeh refugee camps were stretched beyond their limit by recent emergencies in Somalia and South Sudan.
Mr Hernander said that an average of 420 refugees from South Sudan have arrived every week in Kakuma since January, forcing agencies to plan another camp close by.
"In Djibouti, overpopulation at the existing camp has forced the Government to reopen a former camp at the beginning of June," said Mr Hernander. "The 250,000 odd refugees who flooded into Dadaab over the past two years have meant that there is now a funding shortfall of at least USD 60 million for the five camps in the Dadaab complex,' he added. The total number of refugees in Kenya is almost 600,000, but Mr Hernander said that there almost 60,000 urban refugees registered in the country.
LWF estimates that there are currently 29,000 children in two of the Dadaab camps who do not go to school, but providing education for these children would require USD31 million of extra funding over the next six months. Although teacher salaries would comprise only USD70,000, the organisation would need to build almost 800 classrooms, employ the same number of teachers, construct 1,429 toilets and purchase 174,000 exercise books. “29,000 children are out of school in these two camps alone because there are no funds. In Ali Addeh in Djibouti, there is no secondary school and it will cost USD200,000 to build one,” said Mr Hernander.
"The need for decent shelter is equally urgent," he said. Although LWF will build 1,000 new homes for about 5,000 people in Dadaab this in one camp alone 3,000 are needed. This number does not take into account the additional 4,000 shelters for 20,000 refugees who are now living in temporary accommodation and plots on the outskirts of the existing camps. In only two of the five camps there is a lack of 7,000 shelters for 35,000 refugees.
“Refugees stay in makeshift tukuls or in worn-out tents, tents that were supplied during the emergency and now need urgent replacement,” said Mr Hernander. The cost of new tents is about USD4.9 million or USD700 per tent, but building permanent homes will cost USD8.4 million or USD1,200 for a brick shelter. “Brick shelters will not need to replaced in six months as tents do,” said Mr Hernander
LWF also operates education, environment, livelihood, shelter and water and sanitation programs in the Dollo Ado and Jijiga refugee camps in Ethiopia, serving a population of almost 200,000.
"Countries like Kenya and Ethiopia host some of the largest populations of refugees in the world, making it easy to forget that refugees are the responsibility of the international community," said Mr Hernander. "We must all support the efforts of countries who host refugees to take care of them," said Mr Hernander.
*For more information or an interview with Lennart Hernander please contact Melany Markham +254 787 673 115 (after 15 June) or +372 57172 252 (before 15 June) or communication@lwfkenya.org*
The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) operates humanitarian and development programs by over 5,000 staff in 35 countries reaching more than 2 million people. In Kenya and Djibouti, LWF manages the Dadaab, Kakuma and Ali Addeh refugee camps as well as a number of development programs, including water, livelihood, education, and peace-building.
