- The UN refugee agency has said that thousands of Somalis continue to cross and flood the north east Kenyan town despite the recent election and the formation of the new government earlier this year.
The UN High Commission for Refugees spokesperson Ron Redmond said more than 20,000 Somalis have been registered in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camps since the start of 2009, stating that majority view refugees' camps as better option to flee the rising insecurity coupled with drought and food shortages.
Mr Redmond said UNHCR is continuing to receive new arrivals at Kenya’s sprawling and overcrowded Dadaab refugee complex. Designed nearly two decades ago to accommodate a total of 90,000 people, the complex currently houses over 261,000 according to the agency.
“There are concerns that the upcoming rainy season, set to begin in early April, could put additional constraints on the already congested camps,” he said.
According to UNHCR, more than half of the new arrivals to Dadaab are women and children, some having traveled as much as 800 kilometres over 16 days by foot to reach the camps.
Somalia which has not had an effective national government since 1991 when militias ousted the then dictator Siad Barre, has seen more attacks on government forces and unarmed civilians.
The UNHCR said it is finalising plans with the Kenyan government for the construction of new camps to ease the burden on the Dadaab site. “It is crucial for the government to provide us with land as soon as possible, where we can build other camps and thus decongest the existing camps and prepare for more people if the current arrival trend continues,” Mr Redmond stated.
Yesterday, a roadside bomb in Somali’s capital Mogadishu injured the interior minister Sheik Abdulkadir Ali Omar and killed his secretary near his house, sending more fears amongst civilian populations who have lived mostly in personal security alert.
The minister who has recently occupied the position was reportedly passing through the capital's busy Bakara market, a stronghold of the radical al-Shabab militia when a landmine went off.
The recent election of President Sharif Sheik Ahmed has sparked a row with government forces and radical al Shabab waging attack on government demanding the reestablishment of the very strict Shariah court in the Muslim dominated Horn of Africa state.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
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