SOMALIA - Report from Dadaab: Women's Bleak Reality

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 NAIROBI 001616 SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/E AND A/S CARSON E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID PREF SOCI KWMN KE SO SUBJECT: SOMALIA - Report from Dadaab: Women's Bleak Reality ¶1. Summary: While Dadaab's 287,000 refugees are all suffering from tremendously overstretched resources and services, women are disproportionately affected by the difficult conditions and daily challenges of camp life. The most pressing issues identified by the women and girls in Dadaab include: sexual and gender-based violence, female genital mutilation, lack of availability and access to education, and deteriorating health. Across the board, health conditions and indicators in Dadaab are currently far below the standard for emergency situations. On a recent visit to Dadaab, the women with whom we spoke all agreed that camp overcrowding has exacerbated the already dire situation they face. End Summary. -------------- Women Disproportionately Affected -------------- ¶2. Kenya's Dadaab refugee camp - made up of Dagahaley, Ifo, and Hagadera camps - was originally built in the early 1990s to accommodate 90,000 people. Today Dadaab stands as the world's largest refugee camp, sheltering more than 287,000 persons. Over 6,500 new arrivals continue to pour in each month, 50% of whom are children. Land, infrastructure, and resources - including food, water, latrines, education, and health services - are tremendously overstretched. The daily conditions of life in Dadaab are dire, but women and their children are overwhelmingly affected by the violence and poor living standards in the camps. On July 20-22, Embassy representatives visited Dadaab and spoke with women's groups, recently arrived refugees, and women and their daughters who have been living in Dadaab for almost two decades. ¶3. Nearly every woman with whom we spoke noted that "the problems women have are many," and identified sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) as a top priority. According to UNHCR officials in Dadaab, SGBV cases more than doubled in 2008 from the year before. The majority of cases, however, go unreported, as women lack confidence in protection and prosecution services, and also fear stigmatization from the community. A limited security presence in the camps also presents a challenge, compounded by the lack of female police officers. ¶4. Members of the Together Women group in Ifo told us of recent incidences of rape when women travel to the bush to fetch firewood. Because resources are overstretched, firewood is no longer provided and women are often the ones who go to look for it. (Note: Firewood is not currently being provided because UNHCR is still in negotiations with local officials on the price per ton. There has been no firewood contract in effect since January. End note.) Women face severe risk, and are often raped or abused by men en route to areas where they might find wood. Further, women who are raped often face a double victimization, as they are often shunned by their family. A middle-aged woman from the Circle of Friends organization, a group that addressed SGBV in the Hagadera camp, told us that her husband divorced her when he found out she was raped. A majority of women in the camps are divorced or widowed, often solely responsible for a large number of family members and children. ¶5. Domestic violence is another common problem. A young man who is a member of the Men Against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) group in Ifo camp, noted that "some males think that their wives are their property. . .they think that women are like hens, and they can hit them because they are their wives." A woman who is a member of the Parents Against FGM group in Ifo noted that "there are not many supportive men in the camps, and not many who know or understand women's rights." Because women are often most vulnerable, a "safe haven" was constructed in Ifo to offer physical safety to women who have been victimized or face severe security threats. -------------- Female Genital Mutilation: An Almost Universal Practice -------------- ¶6. Despite major campaigns to counter the traditional practice, FGM continues to be a major issue in Dadaab. Estimates suggest that over 96 percent of all Somali women in the camps undergo this practice. FGM is illegal in Kenya, so women opt to perform FGM privately, including the traditional celebrations that accompany the ritual. The practice, while almost universal, has been driven underground in the camps. The pressure to circumcise daughters is still very strong, partly because of the misconception that it is sanctioned by the Quran, as well as the belief that an uncircumcised girl will never find a husband. ¶7. Parents who choose to leave their daughters uncircumcised face alienation from the community, and are often accused of rejecting their culture and religion. Young girls who are uncircumcised often drop out of school due to verbal and physical abuse. One father moved with his five daughters from the Hagadera camp to the Ifo camp so that he could escape the harassment he faced for not accepting NAIROBI 00001616 002 OF 003 the practice. Leaving daughters uncircumcised also creates tensions within families when there is disagreement on the importance of circumcision. There are a few parents in the camp willing to undergo the discrimination and harassment that accompanies having uncircumcised daughters, but many find it easier to succumb to community pressure, fearing for the safety of their families. ¶8. There is some progress in the fight against FGM. Many community organizations, religious leaders and community elders have been vocal on the issue, emphasizing that FGM is not prescribed by the Quran, as well as the dangerous nature of the practice. Men are also beginning to be involved in fighting FGM. One community group, Men against FGM, is an example. A major obstacle to those fighting FGM, however, is the frequent influx of new refugees, often from rural Somalia. Upon arriving, our interlocutors told us these refugees set back the progress made in the camps by increasing the pressure to continue the practice. Consequently, those fighting FGM have to redouble their efforts to reach these newcomers. -------------- Maternal Health Compromised -------------- ¶9. Women's health in the camps is severely compromised. FGM has huge health ramifications for women, contributing to widespread cases of fistula, infections, problems giving birth, and a greater potential for HIV transmission. Nutrition is another issue. According to physician assistants at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) hospital in Hagadera - one of three hospitals in all of Dadaab - anemia is one of the largest problems for women in the camp, and contributes to high rates of maternal mortality. ¶10. Maternity wards in the camps are filled beyond capacity. At the IRC hospital, we observed women lying on mattresses on the ground in the back of the hospital due to lack of beds. Adequate space and staff are lacking, especially given the consistent influx of so many new arrivals. Physician assistants and staff workers at the hospital complained about the fact that women need the consent of their husband or father to get an operation or caesarean section during delivery, which is becoming increasingly necessary as women face many problems giving birth. "Men sit under a tree to discuss the fate of women - whether or not she or the baby should be the one to live," noted an aid worker. ¶11. A noted success for women's health in Dadaab is a marked improvement in the number of women giving birth in hospitals. Incentives have been developed to urge more women to give birth outside their homes, including the provision of registration and ration cards for newborns at the hospital (instead of weeks later), a basket of soap and non-food items for the mother, and a recent program to offer free taxi services for women who commit to giving birth in a hospital. According to a UNHCR health official, rates of hospital deliveries are now well above 70 percent, and the rate of maternal and child health has improved, even if many of the maternity wards are chronically overcrowded. -------------- Additional Women's Health Issues -------------- ¶12. Lack of sanitary pads was another commonly identified problem by the women and girls we met. Muraya Ibrahim, chairwoman of the Together Women Group in Hagadera, noted that sanitary pads are provided inconsistently to women, sometimes once a month, other times not at all. Alice, an aid worker for CARE, also told us that women complain about the quality of pads, as they are often reusable and not as sanitary. (Note: The difficulty with providing disposable sanitary pads in camps is their disposal - refuse pits are overfull due to camp over-population. Another issue is the recurring costs to NGOs with limited budgets to provide the pads. End note.) CARE is advocating for disposable pads, especially for younger girls, so that they do not miss school due to menstruation. ¶13. There is a gaping hole in the provision of mental health or psycho-social services for women in Dadaab. A 30-year old Sudanese refugee who serves as a counselor at Dagahaley noted that there were only eleven community counselors serving the entire camp. Many women go to the health units being violently raped. Most of these women do not receive mental health counseling. Further, a UNHCR Chief of Public Health noted that there is a gap between clinical services and community outreach in the camps, and no connection between the two. -------------- Addressing Girls' Education -------------- ¶14. The education system in the Dadaab camps is very weak, but nevertheless highly valued by the refugee community. As of July NAIROBI 00001616 003 OF 003 2009, approximately half of the children aged 5 - 17 were accessing formal education in the camps. There are nineteen primary schools but only three official secondary schools. Due to the aid organizations' inability to fund another secondary school, community members pooled resources and established a community secondary school in March of 2008, revealing initiative and appreciation of education among the refugees. ¶15. There are major weaknesses in the Dadaab school system. Out of 721 teachers, only 63 are trained, and many have not even completed secondary school. UNHCR recognized this as a major problem and has proposed the creation of a teachers college in the camp to facilitate training. They have yet to receive funding for this proposal, as many donors (including the USG) only have one-year funding instead of the multi-year funding teacher training would require. The poor school facilities are also a major problem. Due to the influx of refugees over the past year, the already dilapidated and small facilities are strained, creating a difficult learning environment and discouraging students from attending school. Primary schools have the dismal teacher/student ration of 1:68, and with 50% of new arrivals young children, the capacity of the primary schools will only be strained further. ¶16. Despite the overall difficult situation for students in Dadaab, female students are even more disenfranchised. Somali cultural and family mores mean that young girls are responsible for household chores, which make it difficult for them to focus on studies. Young girls drop out of school for a variety of reasons, including household duties, early marriage, over-crowded facilities or lack of family support. Only 26% of secondary school students are girls. One mother recommended the creation of boarding schools for girls, so that they are able to focus on studies and avoid pressure to drop out. The World Food Program, a USG partner that provides services in the camps, has a program to give girls a kilo of sugar if they maintain consistent attendance. The program has met with some success. ¶17. Girls also have fewer opportunities for after-school or recreational sports than boys. Although some girls have a strong desire to play sports, they do not have adequate facilities, equipment or training to create sports teams. Community members who consider sports to be immodest and an activity meant solely for boys discourage participation. The Embassy is working with a Dabaab-based youth soccer league to provide uniforms and equipment and will ensure that girls are included in the initiative. -------------- Improvements and Recommendations -------------- ¶18. There are some positive improvements for women. Men and women alike noted that "girls are even attending university," and women are occupying leadership positions within the community and within community-based organizations. Many refugee-initiated community groups are active on issues facing women, including Parents Against FGM, Circle of Women, Together Women, and implementing partners who continue to do engagement on issues concerning domestic violence, FGM, and women's health. Anne, a CARE staff member in the gender and development section, noted that, increasingly, women are becoming economically empowered and are the backbone of their families, by finding income-generating opportunities within the camps. Women continue to demonstrate their strength and resilience, despite the violence and vulnerability they face. ¶19. Possibilities and recommendations for continued engagement include: enhanced support for psychosocial and mental health services; provision of firewood so women are less vulnerable; training of more female police officers; increased support for girls' sports, including the provision of equipment, coaches, and awareness building within the community; and a greater emphasis on girls' education, including the construction of a boarding school for girls. SLUTZ