Kenya

2013 UNHCR country operations profile - Kenya

Working environment

The context

The situation in Somalia has evolved dramatically since 2011 and this has had an impact on Kenya, which hosts large numbers of Somali refugees. Current hopes for stability to take root in Somalia have led to certain expectations of voluntary repatriation of Somali refugees.

In the recent past, the security situation in the Dadaab area has become high-risk and dangerous, following a series of incidents, including the abduction of aid workers and fatal attacks on refugee leaders and Kenyan security forces. This led to more restrictive security measures that curtailed humanitarian access to the camps and obliged the Government of Kenya, UNHCR, partners and the refugee leadership to explore new ways to continue the delivery of assistance and protection.

The outcome of this collaborative process is embodied in an operations continuity plan (OCP), to guide the provision of coordinated and uninterrupted protection and services in the insecure Dadaab refugee complex. The OCP relied greatly on the use of refugee capacity, local community members and local partners to deliver assistance.

From January to August 2012, the Dadaab and Alinjugur camps registered more than 5,700 new arrivals from Somalia, bringing the total population in these camps to some 474,000. In 2011, Dadaab registered 113,500 new arrivals over the same eight month period. The large numbers were mainly due to the prevailing drought, famine and insecurity in Somalia.

The biggest jump in population growth occurred in Kakuma Camp in Turkana County where 13,000 new arrivals, mostly from South Sudan, were registered between January and August 2012. With a population exceeding 101,000, Kakuma is rapidly running out of space. Responding to the need for protection, infrastructure and services of the growing population and alleviating camp congestion are among UNHCR's main priorities in Kakuma.

By August 2012, the total number of refugees and asylum-seekers in Kenya, including some 55,000 in Nairobi, stood at more than 630,000.

The needs

Interventions are needed to improve refugees' physical security, living standards, livelihoods and resilience. These will focus on expanding efforts in the area of law and order; improving social services and infrastructure; constructing adequate housing; and introducing low-cost, clean and renewable domestic energy sources. It will also involve improving school enrolment, retention and graduation rates; training refugees in marketable skills; and helping small-scale entrepreneurs with start-up grants.

Main objectives and targets for 2013

Security from violence and exploitation

Protection from crime is strengthened.

• The total number of police officers in camps reaches 970.

Protection of children is strengthened.

• Best interest determination processes are initiated or completed for 310 unaccompanied and separated children (UASC).

• 240 UASC are placed in alternate care arrangements.

• 1,280 out-of-school adolescents participate in targeted programmes.

Basic needs and essential services

Nutritional well-being is improved.

• The global acute malnutrition rate among children between 6 and 59 months does not exceed 4 per cent.

The health status of the population is improved.

• The under-5 mortality rate does not exceed 1 per 1,000 people per month.

Shelter and infrastructure are established, improved and maintained.

• 60 per cent of households live in adequate dwellings.

The supply of potable water is increased or maintained.

• The average number of litres of potable water available per person per day reaches 24 litres in Dadaab and 20 litres in Kakuma.

The population lives in satisfactory conditions of sanitation and hygiene.

• 60 per cent of households have latrines in Dadaab; 50 per cent in Kakuma.

• 17,000 of household sanitary facilities/latrines are constructed.

• All people of concern receive 250g of soap per person per month in Dadaab; 70 per cent in Kakuma.

• 120,000 women receive sanitary materials.

The population has optimal access to education.

• 68 per cent of persons of concern aged 6-13 years enrolled in primary education in Dadaab; 50 per cent in Kakuma. The population has sufficient access to energy.

• 48 per cent of households have access to sustainable energy in Dadaab; 50 per cent in Kakuma.

Durable solutions

The potential for resettlement is realized.

• 3,700 identified individuals depart for resettlement.

Strategy and activities in 2013

UNHCR's core objectives are to secure access to asylum and international protection for asylum-seekers, preserve the asylum space across the territory, maintain the civilian character of camps, facilitate refugee access to basic services, and find durable solutions. To reach these goals, UNHCR will foster strategic partnerships. It will also advocate for the prevention of statelessness and protection of internally displaced persons (IDPs) while pursuing durable solutions.

Priority will be given to ensuring that all people of concern, whether in camps or in urban centres, are protected in accordance with national law and the relevant international conventions. The protection of vulnerable groups, such as single women who head households, unaccompanied or separated children, the elderly, and persons with special needs, will feature prominently in UNHCR's protection activities.

UNHCR will strive to strengthen the Kenyan Government's refugee management structures by working closely with the Department of Refugee Affairs, the relevant ministries in Nairobi, and the authorities in the refugee-hosting counties of Garissa and Turkana.

The review of the security partnership between the Government and UNHCR is likely to lead to performance improvements and better outcomes in the drive to preserve law and order in the Dadaab, Alinjugur and Kakuma camps.

When conditions in Somalia allow, UNHCR aims to facilitate voluntary repatriation in safety and dignity. UNHCR and its partners will organize the collection and dissemination of objective and balanced information on areas of return. Other durable solution opportunities, notably resettlement, will continue to be sought.

UNHCR will continue to encourage various branches of the Government to support the ratification of the two statelessness conventions, and will pursue strategic partnerships that enhance advocacy and solutions for the prevention of statelessness.

Constraints

UNHCR is working in an insecure environment characterized by targeted attacks on security and refugee officials. There are new physical risks and threats to aid workers, such as abductions in the camps. The size and scale of Dadaab and Alinjugur camps means that ensuring public safety is a complex task.

In Nairobi, the diffuse nature of the urban refugee population complicates protection outreach, communications and timely responses.

The already limited availability of essential services and infrastructure capacity has been put under even greater strain by the rapid growth in the numbers of refugees, resulting in risks to public health for both refugees and host communities.

Dwindling public support for persons of concern is another issue that UNHCR will endeavour to address. There is a perception that refugees pose a threat to Kenya's national security and internal stability, as well as representing a financial and environmental burden.

Organization and implementation

Coordination

UNHCR's strategy for Kenya aims to enhance the infrastructure, framework and partnerships critical to refugee-friendly policies by collaborating with institutions in the executive, legislative, judiciary and media. Partners also include UN agencies and civil society. The Ministry of State for Immigration and Registration of Persons and its Department of Refugee Affairs are UNHCR's primary government counterparts in refugee management. WFP provides food rations for general distribution and other feeding programmes, while the UNHCR-UNICEF partnership is being strengthened in Dadaab and Alinjugur to improve child protection, the response to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), water and sanitation facilities and nutrition, health and education services.

Financial information

As the population of concern has grown, so have budgetary requirements. The deterioration in security and the rise in related risks have added significant costs to the operation. For 2013, total requirements amount to USD 251.6 million.

Source: UNHCR Global Appeal 2013 Update

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