Somalia: Never ending struggle for survival

“With the recent sudden overcrowding, we need more help. We know we won’t get all we need, but we need the basics.” 
Quasin Hassan Mohamed, Chairman of the refugee committee of Hagadere Camp

© Sebastian Bolesch/Das Fotoarchiv

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Project Coordinator Steve Dennis, Somalia, met with Somali Refugees during an exploratory mission to the long-standing camps in North-Eastern Kenya. Hagadere Camp is one of three refugee camps set up in the early 1990s to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the conflict in Somalia. At its peak, there were four camps holding half a million people. During his visit, Steve heard many stories of how people are struggling to survive – from the journey to the camps to the world inside them. Follow the links below to accounts based on his conversations with camp residents and observations from his visit...

After the violent collapse of the Somalia government, many of the refugees in the camp returned home, were relocated to other camps in Kenya, or migrated to Europe and North America. Many died due to the harsh camp conditions. The camp population had declined to around 120,000 people, but has recently been climbing again. In May 2008, the total population in the three camps was around 200,000 people, but with the worsening security conditions in Somalia, this number is anticipated to grow further. However, just looking at the numbers doesn’t give a sense of the place at all.

Fleeing atrocity
Life in transit
A constant struggle – Life in the camp
Dying a little every night

MSF worked in the Dadaab camps on a permanent basis from 1991 until 2004 when we handed over to other medical NGO's. Since then we have assisted the population during recent flooding and cholera emergencies. This report was taken during a recent exploratory mission with the mandate to assess the needs of the newly arrived refugees.