Tent Distribution in Dijbouti

Khorasho and Hawa came to visit to say thank you for the 100 boxes of fortified rice and 50 tents given to their settlement outside of Djibouti town. 
 
Khorasho is married but has no children. Hawa is married and has 4 children. When her oldest daughter died giving birth, along with the baby, her second daughter went crazy and has to be chained up to their hut so she does not wander off. This is a common practice among the mentally unstable in Africa. Left with no alternative, tying up children is also common when the mom cannot watch her toddlers every minute. 

Khorasho’s husband is unemployed and her two remaining children, 7 and 8 years old, do not go to school. Khorasho has no concept of numbers or age, which is unusual among Somalis because even the illiterate can count and often measure their age by seasons and droughts. She said she was around 30 and her mother 120! 

Hawa grew up as an orphan in neighboring Somaliland and is also uneducated. Being illiterate is not uncommon, but these women represent a growing number of IDPs (Internally Displaced Peoples) and refugees who have lost all identity with their culture and oral education in general, which the Somalis are rich in. One can meet a poor Somali who still has some cultural dignity and knowledge and dreams. These poor women seem to have lost all hope. 

Tents and Blankets

The flash flood surprised everyone after 4 years of drought, filling the wadi 
(seasonal river bed) and overflowing into IDP (Internaly Displaced People) 
makeshift homes. The following are pictures of the distribution of tents and blankets 
 to the victims of the flood. 

We were able to help 80 families with tents and blankets. We were assisted by the Djibouti military camp personal. Most of these victims are not long term residents of Djibouti, but have come into the city to look for work/food due to the loss of livestock in the bush, due to drought. It is ironic that they were victims to a flood. 

One lady, a single mom with 4 little children, locked her children in the little hut while she ran out to the market to look for food (this is a common practice). The flood came so quickly that by the time she returned home, her youngest, a toddler, had drown but the other 3 survived the rising water in their little makeshift house. 

Another woman was crying, not to be consoled by anyone. She had her children, but could not find her husband. Several people were rescued by helicopter out of the raging water. Most of the people who were affected were IDP (Internally Displaced People). 

Inside an IDP camp: Food Relief

The needs in the Internally Displaced People (IDP) camp in Mohammed Morge, just outside of Hargeisa, are extreme. The camp was established due to the drought in Somaliland. Officially the camp has 1600 families. There are 5-7 people per family of which 4-5 of these members are children under the age of 15. Most often the inhabitants are thus elderly, widowed, or children. The camp is growing with more than 100 new families arriving per month. The major needs in the camp are food, clean water, shelter, proper sanitation, and medicine. 

The camp has a functional committee that has registered themselves as a CBO (Community Based Organization) with the Somaliland government. It is divided in groups of 20 families with leaders that were appointed by the groups themselves. There is a makeshift clinic with a nurse from Southern Somalia volunteering her services. Some small kiosks have been opened, a small vegetable market exists, and there are some places that sell water. Some of the inhabitants who are strong 
enough go to Hargeisa to beg or look for jobs. 

LIFE International (with the help of donors) gave 1500 14kg boxes of MannaPack Rice to the camp. The LIFE International team went to the camp and distributed the 1500 food coupons door-to-door to the inhabitants of the camp. We gave a box for every food coupon received. Although there has been a bit of insecurity caused by the large crowd of people, the day proceeded as planned and the distribution was successfully completed. Some ‘mamas’ cried for joy while many of them were not even able to carry their own boxes. One lady even collapsed due to hunger. 

Khadija is a 60-year-old Somalilander who has lost her husband a couple of years ago. She has 10 children. “I pray to Allah for help each day. I have nothing and am only begging for my daily bread! This is the first food I have for more than a month,” she said while kissing my hand (as a sign of appreciation).

Sulecha Ismael is barely 20-years-old and already a mother of two. Her husband (30 years old) is with her in the camp and jobless. They fled the fighting in Mogadishu and now she moves from house to house, looking for some washing to do. Life is difficult with her two small children. Many
times they have to go to bed hungry. She appreciated the Manna rice very much!

Habiba clung to to her box of food as she agreed to talk to us. She never took her hand off the box during the
interview, as if it is her only possession. She is a 70-year-old from a rural area in Somaliland. There are 5 of her children with her in the camp. She also has a child in the hospital. The pain in her face tells the story of her 3 children and husband who have died. She has been in the camp for the last 5 months and this is the first relief food she has received!

Distribution to Fire Victims

At the beginning of March 2013 a fire ignited amongst the makeshift houses of the internally displaced people (IDP) camp near State House in Hargeisa. The fire quickly spread consuming the houses and belongings of 109 families. Initially there was a response from several aid and non-governmental organizations; however, by the middle of March the assistance had come to a stand-still.

Upon hearing of the situation, we at LIFE decided that we must do something to further assist the victims of the fire with the little remaining items that we have in storage. With an assortment of clothing and shoes, we put together 109 packages consisting of 11 items, 3 pairs of shoes and 8 articles of clothing. 

In coordination with the Ministry of Resettlements Rehabilitations and Reconstructions (MRR&R), we organized the distribution of the packages to take place on the 9th of April. On that day, a representative from each of the 109 families came to the office of MRR&R where they received their package. The people were happy and excited to receive their gift of shoes and clothes.

Zamzam Ahan Dubeh and her two children sit in the MRR&R compound after being given their package of shoes and clothing. They have been in the IDP camp for 5 months.

Mohamed Amal is married and has 3 children. He is a chemistry teacher and speaks English, yet he also has been forced to move into the IDP camp due to the recent heavy rains. Now, his temporary settlement at the camp has been burned down.

Kahar Jama has been living in the IDP camp for the last 22 years. She moved there at the beginning of the civil war.

Food and Tent Distribution

Generous donors have continued to provide rice, food supplements and shelter. A batch of 440 pink tents has brightened up many shanty areas but more importantly has brightened up the lives of the recipients and provided shelter for cold nights and protection from disease-carrying mosquitoes. 

In this world, having employment may not be enough to keep body and soul together and having an illness throws you on the mercy of others. Here are some examples of those helped this year.

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Khadija is a lady who has three children, one boy and two girls who are deaf. Her husband is a watchman who earns 15,000 Djiboutian Francs ($83) per month.

 She told us, “My husband’s salary is not enough for us. Each month I spend 5,000 df ($27) on milk for my children, and 3,000 ($17) on bus fares for my husband to get to work. That leaves 7,000 df ($38) which is not enough for us to survive the whole month. The rice helps us a lot, because I cannot buy vegetables and meat every day, so when I have rice I can cook it for lunch and for the dinner.”

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Hassan and his wife and six children live in a dry wadi in a major city.  Last fall it rained and the wadi filled with water, washing all their belongings away. Hassan also lives with TB and is under treatment. 

He received a tent, built it up on makeshift stilts and now houses his family there. His family also received rice, which helps feed their family, as his wife does not make enough selling snacks on the street to feed and send her children to school. His wife sells little snacks on the street, making enough money for some of her children to have transport money to go to school.

Southern Somalia Relief Efforts

In response to the drought that wreaked havoc in the Horn of Africa, we have donated 40 boxes of medical supplies, 20 boxes of assorted clothes and shoes, and 500 boxes of MannaPack Fortified Rice, while SCC/UNICEF donated 500 buckets of 20 litres of capacity and soap. Each beneficiary was given one box of MannaPack Fortified Rice, three pieces of soap, a bucket for water, and shoes and clothing.

With our partners, we distributed 6.95 metric tons of food relief consisting of cereal, pulses, vegetable oil and corn soya blend and distributed it to 500 children living in IDP camps in the Hodon district.

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Halima Ayow Abbow, a 38-year-old mother with four children displaced from Dedmay village of Barava district is a widow whose husband was murdered in 2010. As she told us in tears, armed groups belonging to Alshabab Militia that controlled the area took him from his home to an unknown prison. The group accused him of being spy and after two months in their custody they sentenced him to be beheaded and his body thrown in the street.

Halima had eight children with no one to assist her in raising them. She said that she recently lost one of her sons on the way to Mogadishu due to famine. “I didn’t have anything to feed him and we were lacking food for six consecutive days so I took my children here to Mogadishu but we still didn’t eat for over 24 hours.”

In a mixed mood of sadness and relief of the past ordeals, Halima expressed her gratitude to those who donated the nutritious food and other items for her children.

Blanket Distribution

Even in hot areas like the Horn of Africa, it can get very cold at night. This is especially true in the mountain regions and in certain seasons.

 Local Initiatives for Education (LIFE) is one of several local organizations to be chosen by a Japanese charity to distribute blankets to poor communities in appropriate areas. In our case, this was in the hilly areas of northern Djibouti, towards the Eritrean border.

Careful records are essential in distributing goods. Recipients are recorded and marked with indelible ink to ensure fair and responsible allocation and to provide accountability to donors.