Dadaab Refugee Complex, Kenya
Established in 1991, the Dadaab Refugee Complex has a population of 211, 701 registered refugees and asylum seekers as at the end of May 2019, according to the UNHCR. One of the largest in the world, the complex consists of four camps – Dagahaley, Ifo, Ifo 2, and Hagadera. The first camp was created in 1991 when refugees fleeing the civil war in Somalia started to cross the border into Kenya. According to the UNHCR, a large part of the residents in the old camps (Ifo, Dagahaley, Hagadera) arrived in Dadaab in the 1990s and have children and grandchildren born in the camps. Another 13,000 refugees arrived in 2011 when southern Somalia was hit by drought and famine. Most of them, who are mainly pastoralists, are in the new camp, Ifo 2. The old camps resemble naturally-grown towns and have developed into commercial hubs connecting north-eastern Kenya and southern Somalia, the UNHCR report said. In recent times, the UN and the Somalian government are supporting refugees who would like to voluntarily return to Somalia.
