Dadaab: The Camps Cannot Go On
Médecins Sans Frontières Calls For Solutions For Dadaab’s Half A Million Somali Refugees
18 June 2012. It is only a matter of time before the next emergency hits
Dadaab refugee camp, says a briefing paper released today by Médecins Sans
Frontières ahead of World Refugee Day. Dadaab: Shadows of Lives describes
the plight of half a million refugees living in increasingly insecure
conditions with nowhere else to go, and argues that there is an urgent need
to explore alternatives.
One year after the humanitarian crisis of 2011, malnutrition and mortality
rates have dropped to pre-emergency levels, says Médecins Sans Frontières.
But the situation in the camps remains unacceptable, and – without
significant change – this pattern of health crises followed by periods of
relative calm will continue indefinitely, with medical workers constantly
on their guard for the next emergency.
“Today, even though people are fed, Dadaab is no longer a refuge,” says Dr
Elena Velilla, Médecins Sans Frontières’ country representative in Kenya.
“It is clear that the current model of the camps is not working. How many
more nutritional crises or measles epidemics will it take before we start
looking for a solution?”
Refugees – most of them women, young children and the elderly – continue to
arrive from Somalia. But Dadaab can no longer offer them safety. In and
around Dadaab, the security situation is getting worse, affecting services
and the provision of aid by Médecins Sans Frontières and other
organisations.
After a number of serious incidents in October 2011, including the
kidnapping of two Médecins Sans Frontières aid workers, humanitarian
activities in the camps were scaled down and registration and medical
screening of newly arrived refugees brought to a halt. In the eight months
since then, new arrivals have had to find shelter with long-term refugees
in the already overcrowded camps, and there have been outbreaks of measles
and cholera.
Possible alternatives to Dadaab put forward by Médecins Sans Frontières
include persuading the international community to allow more refugees to
resettle abroad, relocating the refugees to a safer area in camps of a more
manageable size, and developing opportunities for refugees to become more
self-reliant.
“A refugee camp is not a long-term solution,” says Dr Velilla. “Thousands
of vulnerable people have already suffered too much. In a safe haven,
health and dignity should be guaranteed. As long as no action is taken, the
Somali refugees will continue to pay the price.”
Médecins Sans Frontières runs a 300-bed hospital in Dagahaley, one of the
five camps that make up Dadaab. There are currently more than 850 severely
malnourished children enrolled in the nutrition programme. Médecins Sans
Frontières staff carry out an average of 14,000 medical consultations each
month and admit 1,000 refugees as inpatients. The hospital also provides
maternity care, surgery and treatment for HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.
Médecins Sans Frontières also runs four health posts in Dagahaley providing
basic healthcare including antenatal care, vaccinations and mental
healthcare.
ENDS