Kakuma Refugee Camp 2, Zone 1, Block 1, Kenya: International City of Peace
We welcome the people of the Kakuma Refugee Camp 2, Zone 1, Block 1 in Turkana County, Kenya as an International City of Peace. Mark Ndayizeye is the Liaison (leader) of the Peace Team that is committed to increasing the safety, prosperity and quality of life in their area of the Kakuma Refugee Camp.
Kakuma refugee camp is located in the North-western region of Kenya. The camp was established in 1992 following the arrival of the “Lost Boys of Sudan”. During that year, large groups of Ethiopian refugees fled their country following the fall of the Ethiopian government. Somalia had also experienced high insecurity and civil strife causing people to flee.
Note: Introduction page with information primarily at the time of joining International Cities of Peace. For updates, please contact the liaison.
CHALLENGES: A BRIEF HISTORY OF KAKUMA (submitted by the Liaison)
Kakuma refugee camp is a camp that is located in Kakuma Municipal Turkana West, Sub-County in Turkana County in the north rift valley of Kenya. this camp was officially built to host the lost boys from Sudan where there was a black five war between the blacks and Arabs from Sudan at that time.
Kakuma refugee camp is located in a Harsh environment where everything to eat is supplied to the neighboring countries such as Transinzoia also known as Kitale.
Conflict errupted between Turkana and Dinka the South Sudanese refugee. Later around 2003, the other refugees from Somalia, Ethiopia, Uganda, Eritrea, Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi.
The Kakuma refugee camp and Kalobeyei settlement hosted more than 300,000 refugees from more than 17 nationalities. There have been a lot of internal conflicts between the refugees. These include the conflicts between Dinkas and between Nuer and Dinka between Somalia and Turkana.
The Refugees in the Kakuma refugee camp have been confronted by their Neighboring Turkana the Host community which involved several deaths. This mostly was based on the lack of social economic issues such as the cutting of trees by refugees to make charcoal which led Turkana to fight refugees claiming to take over their work of charcoal and destroying their environment. Police and different agencies intervened in the crisis until the solutions were reached.
Examples of these conflicts also include the 2007 conflicts between Nuer and Nubian conflicts between the Great Lakes community in 2014 and the conflict between Nubians in 2012. Various agencies including international organizations and CBOs took part in sensitizing the refugee conflict and the refugee community on peacebuilding to harmonize the refugee and host communities.
The peaceful co-existence has reached through some violations in various corners at the peripheries of the camp by the youths.
MISSION
To offer quality education to Reliance /Marginalized person(s) to transform the world and combat poverty.
VISION
To prepare the Reliance /Marginalized person with powerful skills through Training to high competitors in their profession
OBJECTIVES
We are developing young people, especially in quality education, and transforming those who are not with their parents or guardians, and these adult refugees cannot get financial assistance to help themselves, especially to acquire skills needed to find a job.
ABOUT THE UNITY INITIATIVE FOR REFUGEES
About us:
Unity Initiative for Refugees (UIR) is a non-profit organization is Refugee Led organization that was formed on 01 January 2019 with the aim to span social sustainability respite among the youth in Kakuma, through programs of Permaculture, VSLA, Adult education, Mental health, Sanitation, and Child rights education.
What we do:
We empower and advocate young refugees in digital entrepreneurship and permaculture through community empowerment.
Where we work:
We work Kakuma refugee camps and Kalobeyei settlement also the host communities closer to refugee camps.
ACTIVITIES
International activities to Kakuma and Kalobeyei
- Youth engagement with poverty
- Empower youth of girl or woman
Local activities to Kakuma and Kalobeyei
- Build resilience in youth
- Self-awareness and mindfulness youth
CORE VALUES
Integrity
Excellence
Accountability
MOTTO
Serve humanity, change the World.
ABOUT THE LIAISON
Mark Ndayizeye
Born in 1st Jan1999 as the second born in the Family in Burundi. As you know Burundi was under a civil war with in which his parents were killed when he was 4 months old. Mark came to realise himself when was in Kigeme refugee camp in Rwanda, he served as a teacher in early education, primary school and secondary school. In 2009 the Government forced them to repatriated back to their home country where he stayed for 1 month and went Back to Rwanda for further education at Gisagara high school where he obtained a secondary school certificate 2010. After completion he decided to head to Kenya where he claimed his Asylum seeker In Kakuma refugee camp in Turkana west sub county, Turkana county.
In 2012 he started Further education by undertaking short courses such as like English course, Plumbing grade 3,2 up grade 1.After this he didn’t sit down rather he enrolled in community business and development at Gonzaga university of America. Where he obtained a certificate After this course Mark Ndayizeye did not get Satisfied, he also joined Water management and Technology under IsrAiad Technion institution from Israel.
He also joined an other course which was social worker andCommunity development and awarded with Diploma from Kenya collage of commercial and hospitality. He didn’t give up he did a Bachelor degree in social worker and community development from the University of the people of America. After completing the Bachelor degree, Mark didn’t feel satisfied, he joined social media and marketing course from International Trade Center from America.
In 2014 Mark worked as senior supervisor in plumbing pipe filter in Lutheran world federation under Education department controlling 24 schools.
Due to running out of the Budget, Mark wasn’t lucky enough because the organization decided to reduce staffs targeting from the high paid incentives.In 2015. After 2016 Mark joined NRC as security guard assistant supervisor up to 2017. After this job, Mark also applied for Interpretation services in Department refugee services up-to date.
Since 2018,Mark started a plan of looking for someone would wife his tears that he sheded during his orphan life and God offered him Nishimwe Amina who was the second born in their family as Mark. She was a Burundian who grew up and studied in Uganda up to grade 6 primary.
In 2020 Mark managed to pay a dawry of kshs 70000 despite all challenges the faced in his younghood. Nishimwe Amina came to Kenya on 15th January 2021 and started planning together about their wedding ceremony which was held in Kingdom vision church at kakuma 2 Kakuma refugee camp On 12th June 2021 .The day of their wedding, there was a challenge because the church lost one of its members which means some attended the wedding and others attended the burial since the person died at nigh and due to the camp hospital routine, when a person died must be buried next day.
After their wedding, Mark would live with happiness with his lovely one. After few months, God blessed them Nishimwe Amina conceived and later gave birth to a beautiful girl by the name Happiness Ndayizeye Iteriteka After few days, the maternity decharged Them went home happily. Mark and his friends cerebrated the coming the new born in their family.
This happiness could not last longer because on the 2nd day, there were visitors who came to see the Baby with gifts and soft drinks in which they put poison which taken her life. After death of the mother the child was taken by the good Samaritan by the name Dorthea Uwimana up to date .
Despite all terrible challenges that Mark undergone since his childhood today He did not lose hope. Mark believes that God is always on his side therefore Mark continued discussing friends, neigborous, colleagues and praying to God for empowerment since his a Humanitarian servants.
Despite all the challenges,Mark Ndayizeye created a Community Based Organization namely Unity Initiative for Refugees in 2019 in collaboration with 25 team members and this organization continue to help the community around kakuma refugees camp and Kalobeyei settlement in Kenya.
CONTACT INFORMATION
To contact or support this initiative:
Turkana West County
Kakuma Refugee Camp
KK2 Zon1 Block 1
Tel: +254788737220
Email: uir7859@gmail.com
ABOUT THE KAKUMA REFUGEE SETTLEMENT (from Wikipedia)
Kakuma is a town in northwestern Turkana County, Kenya. It is the site of a UNHCR refugee camp, established in 1992. The population of Kakuma town was 60,000 in 2014, having grown from around 8,000 in 1990. In 1991, the camp was established to host unaccompanied minors who had fled the war in Sudan and from camps in Ethiopia. It was estimated that there were 12,000 “lost boys and girls” who had fled here via Egypt in 1990/91.
Kakuma is situated in the second poorest region in Kenya and as a result of this poverty, there are ongoing tensions between the refugees and the local community that has occasionally resulted in violence. Compared to the wider region, the Kakuma camp has better health facilities and a higher percentage of children in full-time education, which resulted in a general notion that the refugees were better off than the locals. The host community is composed largely of nomadic pastoralists who stick to their traditions and do not co-operate with refugees. Camp is becoming a normal part of the regional socio-economic landscape and a part of livelihood options available in the region. Kakuma is one of two large refugee camps in Kenya; the second and bigger one is Dadaab.
Malnutrition, communicable disease outbreaks, and malaria are all ongoing problems, while donor support has faltered due to conflicts in other parts of the world. Many people in Kakuma are long-term refugees, living in hopelessness and desperation. The situation is particularly bad for young people. Many of the refugees hope to leave Kakuma for third country resettlement in another country. For example, the “Lost Boys of Sudan” were a special group who were resettled from the camp to the United States.
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