Photo: Jens-Petter Kjemprud/Royal Norwegian Embassy in Addis AbabaVisit to refugee camps for Somali refugees
Last updated: 19.05.2010 //
Somali refugees from Southern Somalia flow into Ethiopia due to the difficult situation in their home country. UNHCR has a serious funding gap for their operations. Ambassador Jens-Petter Kjemprud thus joined a visit to the camps of Bokolmayo and Malkadida in Ogaden yesterday. The two camps, run by the Ethiopian refugee agency ARRA and UNHCR, hosts more than 30.000 refugees living under difficult conditions. 500 new arrivals reached the border city Dolo Abo yesterday.
| Ethiopia currently hosts more than 140.000 refugees mainly from the neighbouring countries (70.000 from Somalia, more than 40.000 from Eritrea and nearly 30.000 form Sudan). There is a continuous flow of refugees from both Somalia and Eritrea due to the difficult situation in both countries.
In the two newly established camps of Bokolmayo and Malkadida impressive efforts have been made by ARRA and UNHCR, assisted by WFP and a number of NGOs, to facilitate the refugees coming from Somalia, but both camps are run under difficult conditions and with serious financial constraints. Food, water and health services is at a minimum and health referral system was non-existent leaving the refugees at high risk.
Ambassador Kjemprud met a number of refugee children suffering from diseases which should have seen them in hospital for life-saving treatment. More assistance is needed for the camps and representatives from six donor countries, who joined the tour of the camps, promised to look into possible additional funding for the operations of UNHCR and the other agencies. Ambassador Kjemprud, who has himself worked for the UNHCR and is a former refugee attaché with the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that he had never seen refugee camps in such dire need of extraordinary assistance.
In UNHCR sub-office in Dolor Ado, the Norwegian Refugee Council has seconded Umesh K- Kattel, a Public Health Coordinator to support UNHCR operations, while NOREPS has delivered a number of Rubb Halls for the operation of the camps. |
 Photo: Jens-Petter Kjemprud/Royal Norwegian Embassy in Addis Ababa Ambassdor of Japan Kinichi Komano and Ambassador of Norway Jens-Petter Kjemprud. Photo: Royal Norwegian Embassy in Addis Ababa |