Many refugees in Kenya have overcome hardships that are difficult to imagine for those who have not experienced them directly.
Emmanuela*, a 27-year-old mother, is one. She arrived in Kenya in 2019 after fleeing from violent clashes that broke out between the government and opposition forces in Burundi, her homeland. This violence impacted her family in unimaginable ways.
“I love my country, it’s beautiful and green,” said Emmanuela. “But many of my siblings and my parents were killed in the conflict.”
Emmanuela was one of the lucky ones in her family. A surviving brother took her in when she could no longer return to her parents’ home, and there she hid with her children until she was able to escape the country.
“I was afraid that since everyone else was killed, that it could also happen to me,” she said.
Once in Kenya, Emmanuela received support from HIAS Kenya as part of a European Commission-funded program that provides emergency assistance to refugees in Nairobi, Dadaab, Kakuma, and Kalobeyei.
The program provides emergency support to groups of refugees at-risk of violence such as children, elderly adults, and caregivers. Field teams provide services such as cash and voucher assistance (CVA) to cover urgent needs such as food and housing, violence prevention, and child protection.
Mental health and legal support are provided as complementary services to participants that require further assistance.
Emmanuela is the sole caregiver of her two children. Her husband left her before she departed from Burundi, and she made the long journey to Kenya with her children alone. Through the program, she received childcare services in the Child Friendly Spaces, a small initiative run by HIAS Kenya which allowed her to work and continue providing for her family.
“The space helps me a lot. I can keep working knowing my children are in a safe place,” she said.
Patrice*, a 64-year-old business owner, also arrived in Kenya fleeing from violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He, like Emmanuela, didn’t want to leave his home country, where he had a well-established agricultural business. But one day, it became impossible for him to stay.
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Read More“I gave birth to a child with albinism, and we started to suffer from a lot of violence and hatred from the community,” Patrice said.
Despite these challenges, Patrice decided to stay and to take care of his business. However, things changed when his daughter also gave birth to a child with albinism – and the violence they suffered from in the community became too much to bear.
They packed up everything they could and left for Kenya in 2018. HIAS Kenya, provided Patrice, his children, and his wife with psychological support to help them recover from the trauma of everything they experienced.
In addition to psychological support, his family also received cash and voucher assistance (CVA), which helped them pay for rent, and money which allowed them to buy clothes and bedding.
“HIAS helps everyone, whether you’re from Burundi, Ethiopia, or Uganda — they help you,” he said.
The program, implemented by HIAS Kenya, the Danish Refugee Council, and the Norwegian Refugee Council with European Commission funding, will continue to provide support to refugees at-risk of violence in Kenya until February 2025.
