![[Kenya] Refugees wait with their belongings to be collected for their transfer to Dadaab’s camps, Liboi reception centre, along the Kenya-Somalia border in the remote eastern region of the country, 28 November 2006. The United Nations High Commissioner](https://assets.thenewhumanitarian.org/s3fs-public/styles/responsive_large_2x/public/images/200612623.jpg.webp?itok=0E6i7Hag "Refugees with their belongings at Liboi reception centre")
The seven Kenya Red Cross Society trucks, two military escort cars, an ambulance and two cars belonging to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) took four-and-a-half hours to cover the 80 km dirt road from Dadaab to Liboi reception centre in the northeastern Kenyan region that borders Somalia.
The trucks had been rented by UNHCR to transport 400 refugees from the reception centre to Dadaab camp. As the convoy pulled into Liboi just after midday on 28 November, the refugees were frantically packing their belongings into small pieces of luggage. Others were already standing patiently in line, hoping to be among the first to be transferred to Dadaab that day.
"They have all been screened. We now have a list of all the names of the people present. We will call them in families and see how many we will be able to fit in the trucks today," said Michael Agundah from UNHCR, adding that the trucks would not take everyone that day.
The refugees had been waiting at the fenced-in transit camp near the border for two months to be taken to Dadaab, where the three main camps are located at Ifo, Dagahaley and Hagadera. Efforts to move them had been hampered further by recent rains that cut off roads and restricted humanitarian operations.
"It has been difficult for everyone here, because the rains affected road access. In addition, we are struggling with a rise in disease that has affected many people," said Abdikadir Ali, who had arrived in Liboi on foot from Somalia six weeks earlier.
Like Abdikadir Ali, most of the refugees had travelled for weeks from war-ravaged Somalia - using every available means of transport. There were reports of families walking from Baidoa, Kismayo and as far as Mogadishu. Along the way, conditions were harsh as they passed through some of the least hospitable regions in the Horn of Africa, without adequate water or food.
"I arrived with my wife and nine children about two months ago. We have been waiting to be transferred to Dadaab since then," said Armie Ali, who came from Mogadishu. "It was very hard for me and my family. The journey from Mogadishu took two months and we spent all our savings," he added.
UNHCR is responsible for protecting and assisting the refugees, working with other aid agencies such as Care-Kenya. "There are more than 150,000 refugees at the moment in the three camps in Dadaab. There has been a sharp increase of people crossing the border due to the instability in southern Somalia, and a general lack of acceptable living conditions," said Susana Martinez, UNHCR’s community services officer.
Recent floods had disrupted operations in the camp. "The floods have caused some serious disturbances in the camps on lower ground," Martinez added. "We had to relocate people to higher ground and supply them with new materials for shelters. The heavy rains also disrupted road accessibility, hampering aid efforts to the most vulnerable groups in need of assistance."
About 25,000 Somali refugees have entered Kenya since early this year and aid workers estimate that 300 more cross the border each day, amid growing fears of a widespread regional conflict originating from Somalia.
"We left because of poor living conditions," Armie Ali said. "We did not own a home back in Mogadishu. There is no food, no work in Somalia. War has disrupted our lives. We had no choice but to get away from this situation."
sm/mw/eo
The trucks had been rented by UNHCR to transport 400 refugees from the reception centre to Dadaab camp. As the convoy pulled into Liboi just after midday on 28 November, the refugees were frantically packing their belongings into small pieces of luggage. Others were already standing patiently in line, hoping to be among the first to be transferred to Dadaab that day.
"They have all been screened. We now have a list of all the names of the people present. We will call them in families and see how many we will be able to fit in the trucks today," said Michael Agundah from UNHCR, adding that the trucks would not take everyone that day.
The refugees had been waiting at the fenced-in transit camp near the border for two months to be taken to Dadaab, where the three main camps are located at Ifo, Dagahaley and Hagadera. Efforts to move them had been hampered further by recent rains that cut off roads and restricted humanitarian operations.
"It has been difficult for everyone here, because the rains affected road access. In addition, we are struggling with a rise in disease that has affected many people," said Abdikadir Ali, who had arrived in Liboi on foot from Somalia six weeks earlier.
Like Abdikadir Ali, most of the refugees had travelled for weeks from war-ravaged Somalia - using every available means of transport. There were reports of families walking from Baidoa, Kismayo and as far as Mogadishu. Along the way, conditions were harsh as they passed through some of the least hospitable regions in the Horn of Africa, without adequate water or food.
"I arrived with my wife and nine children about two months ago. We have been waiting to be transferred to Dadaab since then," said Armie Ali, who came from Mogadishu. "It was very hard for me and my family. The journey from Mogadishu took two months and we spent all our savings," he added.
UNHCR is responsible for protecting and assisting the refugees, working with other aid agencies such as Care-Kenya. "There are more than 150,000 refugees at the moment in the three camps in Dadaab. There has been a sharp increase of people crossing the border due to the instability in southern Somalia, and a general lack of acceptable living conditions," said Susana Martinez, UNHCR’s community services officer.
Recent floods had disrupted operations in the camp. "The floods have caused some serious disturbances in the camps on lower ground," Martinez added. "We had to relocate people to higher ground and supply them with new materials for shelters. The heavy rains also disrupted road accessibility, hampering aid efforts to the most vulnerable groups in need of assistance."
About 25,000 Somali refugees have entered Kenya since early this year and aid workers estimate that 300 more cross the border each day, amid growing fears of a widespread regional conflict originating from Somalia.
"We left because of poor living conditions," Armie Ali said. "We did not own a home back in Mogadishu. There is no food, no work in Somalia. War has disrupted our lives. We had no choice but to get away from this situation."
sm/mw/eo
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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