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From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Wed Aug 10 2011 - 14:35:04 EDT
Over 1,000 Somali Refugees a Day Arrive at Kenya Camps
Joe DeCapua
August 10, 2011
A malnourished Somali refugee at a field hospital of the International
Rescue Committee, IRC, in Dadaab, Kenya, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2011.
SOMALIA / DADAAB UPDATE -- There's no slowdown in the number of Somalis
arriving at the Dadaab refugee camps in northeastern Kenya. The U.N. refugee
agency (UNHCR) says thousands more are arriving each week. Drought and
famine are forcing many people to walk 15 to 20 days in dry, dusty weather
to reach the camps.
"The average daily arrivals for the first week of August was over 1,400 and
that brings the new arrivals to that camp so far this year to about 127,000.
In July, we had more than we ever had in the 20-year history of the camp. It
was over 40,000 people and it looks like we're well on the way to that
again," said UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond, who spent most of this week at
Dadaab. (To listen to interview click on the player below)
Getting bigger
Initially, Dadaab was constructed to hold about 90,000 people. However, it's
been expanded to accommodate several hundred thousand.
"That was a problem for the last couple of years because the Kenyans did not
want us to put more people in that camp. But there are so many coming across
that we've agreed now that we'll open two new additions to the camp. One of
them is called the Ifo Extension, which is part of the old Ifo camp, but
it's a new area there. We're going to put 90,000 people in that site," he
said.
The second expansion is called Cambios, a totally new camp. It will be the
fourth large refugee camp at Dadaab and will also hold 90,000 refugees.
Redmond said, "If the numbers coming in continue as they have been, we're
probably going to fill both of those in the next four to six months."
Numbers tell the tale
The large influx of refugees is the biggest sign of drought conditions in
Somalia.
"We know that things are exceptionally bad inside Somalia. We've got camps
besides here in Dadaab. We've also got camps in Ethiopia in a place called
Dollo Ado and they were earlier getting about 2,000 a month. That's declined
a bit," he said.
UNHCR staffers have visited the refugee corridors to Kenya and Ethiopia and
talked to those seeking food and water.
"They stated if they could they would stay in Somalia if we can get help
into them. So that's going to be the next step, to try to get assistance to
people in place so that they don't have to cross international borders if
they don't want to and can get help there until the rains come and they can
go back to their farms," said the UNHCR spokesman.
Long-term
Many climate and weather experts have forecast continued frequent drought
conditions in the Horn of African for years to come. So while emergency
efforts are needed to save lives now, long-term policies are also required.
"This has already been a long-range situation, much too long. We've been in
these camps for 20 years and for most of those 20 years the plight of these
Somalis has been largely out of sight. Now that there's this drought
compounding the situation, they're back on the international radar screen.
But it's been our position all along that first of all there has to be a
political solution to this situation in Somalia," said Redmond.
The UNHCR has called on both the international community and Somalis to find
that solution. There has been almost constant conflict in Somalia since the
1990s, following the fall of leader Mohammed Siad Barre. The current
Transitional Federal Government and its AU allies have been at war with
militias, especially al-Shabab.
"As far as long-term weather patterns and climate change and so on, I mean
that's another major concern on top of this for the Horn of Africa. But,
right now, we need peace and stability in Somalia. There are hundreds of
thousands of people I think who would go home if they saw a future in that
country, but right now they don't," he said.
Definition of Famine:
The word famine is a term that is not used lightly by humanitarian
organizations. The United Nations describes a crisis as a famine only when
the following conditions are met:
. Malnutrition rates exceed 30 percent
. More than two people per 10,000 people are dying each day
. Severe lack of food access for large population
Current Famine:
Almost half of Somalia's population, 3.7 million people, are affected by the
current crisis with malnutrition rates in southern Somalia the highest in
the world, surpassing 50 per cent in some areas. The United Nations says it
is likely that tens of thousands have already have died, the majority of
those being children.
The drought that has led to the current famine in parts of Somalia has also
affected people in Kenya and Ethiopia.
Previous Famines in the Horn of Africa:
. Somalia 1991-1992
. Ethiopia 1984-1985
. Ethiopia 1974
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