Support Activities in Kenya’s Refugee Settlements

Since 2012, Peace Winds has remained active in supporting residents of Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp near the Somali border, the Kakuma refugee camp near the South Sudan border, and the Kalobeyei refugee settlement area (not far from Kakuma). These camps are home to refugees from several neighboring countries, including South Sudan, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia. Major support areas include agricultural recovery, hygiene, and shelter. In April 2024, Peace Winds also responded to the large-scale flooding that killed more than 470 individuals across Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.

2024 Flood Response

Many of Kenya’s refugee camps and host communities where Peace Winds works were devastated by the heavy rains and flooding that began in April 2024. Early humanitarian response included the distribution of items such as soap and sanitary products, blankets, and tarps to affected households. Due to destruction of water lines and toilets, one of the biggest concerns is the spread of water-borne diseases. Peace Winds is working to address issues of water, sanitation, hygiene, and waste management in the camps.

Agricultural Recovery

In recent years, Kenya has seen an influx of desert locust swarms which destroy crops, leading to food shortages and price increases. The consequences are especially dramatic considering that life in Kenya centers heavily on agriculture.

In response to this situation, from April to December 2021, Peace Winds provided disaster-affected households with supplies and training necessary for rebuilding pastures and farmlands and preventing livestock diseases. Also, because the drought during this time in 2021 was severe, Peace Winds installed irrigation pipes in one of the local villages so that water could flow from the source to the pasture even when there was little rain.

By the end of the project, the grass in our beneficiaries’ pastures had recovered, and residents continue to practice the agricultural techniques they learned from Peace Winds’ training program. 

Hygiene

As of October 2022, Peace Winds is active in hygiene education at an overcrowded lodging facility in the Kakuma refugee camp. Although the center’s capacity is about 1,000, it is currently home to nearly 2,200 refugees, mostly from South Sudan. These refugees share 20 toilets at the lodging facility. Because there are neither the space nor the funds to build more toilets, Peace Winds is working with health educators to ensure that beneficiaries practice healthy habits to keep the facilities clean. Refugees there say that issues of cleanliness such as open defecation have dramatically decreased.

Furthermore, menstrual hygiene and education is another issue facing refugee camps. In and around northwestern Kenya’s Kalobeyei settlement, girls and women are often forced to take time off school during menstruation due to a lack of menstrual supplies and persistent superstitions about menstruation.

Peace Winds works with various partners such as local health departments and schools to promote understanding of menstruation not only for women and girls but also for men and boys. We have also trained local sewing craftsmen to create reusable cloth menstrual pads and have distributed more than 8,000 to date. In May 2023, thanks to the support of our followers and individual donors, Peace Winds was able to provide these craftsmen with their own workspaces and equipment such as sewing machines.

Through these activities, Peace Winds aims to create an environment where all community members, including men, are involved in menstruation hygiene and education.