KENYA: A growing refugee crisis

NAIROBI, 19 June 2009 (IRIN) - Ever-worsening security in Somalia is prompting large numbers of civilians to flee into Kenya, where facilities to host them are stretched to bursting point, raising fears of a major refugee crisis. Dadaab in eastern Kenya, is home to an estimated 279,000 mainly Somali refugees - triple its designated capacity. Its Dagahaley, Hagadera and Ifo camps together comprise the largest refugee site in the world. Kenya's closure of its Somali border in January 2007 did little to stem the tide. "On average, about 7,000 Somali refugees are coming into the country every month this year," Kellie Leeson, International Rescue Committee (IRC) country director for Kenya, told IRIN. "We need more land for Dadaab to spread the camp out so that people can live in dignity," she said. The UN Refugee Agency (UNCHR) is talking with the Kenyan government in an effort to obtain more land. IRC is providing healthcare services in Dadaab as well as water and sanitation services in Kakuma camp, northwestern Kenya. “The high [refugee] population has made it extremely challenging to deliver services,” Leeson said. “Water has been a really big challenge as well as provision of adequate latrines..more..http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=84920