Resource-strained South Sudanese refugees from Kenya’s Kakuma now calls for support
Kenyan media on Thursday reported that at least 668 refugees fleeing from Kenya’s Kakuma camp arrived in Kapoeta East County after rising hunger and malnutrition in the camp
By James Chatim
Torit County is still receiving a high influx of refugees yet the available resources have already been strained by the earlier arrivals of refugees from Kenya’s Kakuma, local authorities have warned.
On Thursday, while speaking to The City Review on phone, Eastern Equatoria State Minister of Information, Elia John Ahaji, said the refugees returning back home from Kakuma in neighboring Kenya are straining the already limited resources and fragile infrastructure to the host communities.
Ahaji said the influx pose serious challenges to local households in the areas, including the shortage of shelter.
“The refugees have been coming in their numbers. They are now in Torit, the state capital and other parts of the region stretching to the neighboring communities,” the information minister said.
“I may not have the actual numbers at the moment but the RRC (Relief and Rehabilitation Commission) has the statistics. Most of those people, when they come, they immediately proceed to their respective counties,” he said.
“These people are with the RRC, giving pressure to the already stretched local resources such as health centers. So, it is a bit challenging since even getting shelters is a problem. While people are now in one house, the house or one home combines a big number of households which is now hosting like three households. It’s challenging,” the state minister explained.
Kenyan media on Thursday reported that at least 668 refugees fleeing from Kenya’s Kakuma camp arrived in Kapoeta East County after rising hunger and malnutrition in the camp. The refugees were reported to be struggling to access meals due to aid cuts.
The aid cuts have had a ripple effect beyond just food but also led to the collapse of informal credit market.
In Kakuma, shopkeepers often provide food on credit, using a refugee’s future aid transfers as collateral.
According to reports, when the value of these transfers dropped, shopkeepers had no choice but to tighten credit limits or stop lending altogether.
