Latest news with #ShirikaPlan
TimesLIVE
24-05-2025
- TimesLIVE
Trans refugees fear abuse, death as Kenya plans to integrate camps
Weeks after the launch of an ambitious plan to integrate refugees into Kenyan society, some transgender refugees say they would rather return home and risk the dangers they originally fled than face the possibility of fresh abuse in Kenya. In the Kakuma camp, in northern Kenya, transgender refugees say the government's Shirika Plan could expose them to transphobia and violence. About 165 transgender refugees, most of those in Kakuma, live in the area of the camp called Block 13. Many said they had already experienced violence and discrimination and fear the risks would be even higher once the camps are integrated into Kenyan society. 'If we have been attacked inside the camp, which is a protected zone, what guarantees do we have that we will not be attacked in an open society?' asked Emily Elisa, a 32-year-old trans woman from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who has been in Kakuma for seven years. 'The camp has never been safe for all queer refugees, but for transgender people, it has been more of a death trap,' Elisa said, adding that she had been attacked five times. Trena, a 24-year-old transgender woman who has been in Kakuma for five years and did not want to give her last name, said other refugees beat her and her partner in 2023 for wearing rainbow bracelets. Trena's dreadlocks were shaved off.
NBC News
28-04-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
LGBTQ refugees say Kenya's reform plan risks leaving them out
LIMURU, Kenya — Already an outsider, Ugandan refugee Constance fears a plan to integrate hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers into Kenyan society will instead further alienate him and other LGBTQ refugees at a time of rising hostility. The Shirika Plan, launched by President William Ruto last month, will transform two of the world's largest refugee camps into open cities and allow the country's more than 800,000 refugees to finally get jobs, health care and other services. Under Shirika, which means 'coming together' in Swahili, the nearly half-million refugees at the Kakuma camp in the north and the Dadaab camp near the Somali border can choose to leave the settlements to live alongside other Kenyans. 'The idea of integration is good, because it will guarantee refugees a free life and all rights, like any other Kenyan,' said Constance, who runs a safe house for Ugandan LGBTQ refugees. He did not give his last name for safety reasons. But Constance said groups representing LGBTQ people have not been invited to public forums held in major cities to debate the plan, which was first floated in 2023. 'Unlike other refugees, we have serious concerns about security, health and housing that should be incorporated ... But how will we voice these issues when we are not part of the process?' he said. Kenya's refugee commissioner John Burugu said all those affected by the Shirika Plan had been invited to comment. 'We have not locked any one or group out of the process,' Burugu told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone. 'You don't have to physically attend the public participation forums. We have people, groups and organizations who submitted written memoranda, and we captured their views.' But organizations defending the rights of LGBTQ refugees fear this vulnerable group is being ignored. Chance for inclusion The multi-year Shirika Plan has been lauded by the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR as an opportunity to improve the lives of refugees and create economic opportunities for Kenya. For decades, Kenya has hosted refugees, mostly from Somalia, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, many of whom have built lives in the sprawling expanses of Kakuma and Dadaab and whose children are now adults, having known no other home. Yet people in these camps live in limbo, unable to legally open bank accounts, start businesses or work. State schools do not accept refugee pupils, and asylum seekers need permits to move around the country. Kenya's 2021 Refugees Act was supposed to address these gaps, but bureaucratic hurdles and a lack of resources have prevented its full implementation. At the Shirika Plan's formal launch in Nairobi, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said it 'recognizes that solutions, which shift away from refugee dependency on humanitarian aid towards greater self-reliance, are possible.' Ruto described Shirika as 'our bold, homegrown solution' that would be centered on human rights. The plan will be implemented through 2036 and is expected to cost about $943 million. Funding will come from the World Bank, UNHCR and private institutions, and the Kenyan government is due to allocate resources in its budget in June. However, the plan has faced opposition from some community leaders. Daniel Epuyo, a member of parliament for the Turkana West constituency where Kakuma is situated, said community leaders were not adequately consulted. The leaders are calling for repatriation instead of integration. Anti-LGBTQ sentiment Activists fear the Shirika Plan could worsen anti-LGBTQ sentiment in Kenya and other parts of Africa that has increased in recent years. Kenya was once considered a haven for LGBTQ refugees, and the U.N. said 1,000 Ugandans sheltered here in 2021 — a figure that has likely grown since neighboring Uganda passed a law in 2023 that includes the death penalty for 'aggravated homosexuality.' Kenya has statutes criminalizing same-sex relations, though they are rarely enforced. Yet cases of homophobic abuse and discrimination occur, and activists fear LGBTQ people, including refugees, are being politically targeted. Last year, Burugu said being persecuted as an LGBTQ person is not grounds for protection in Kenya. Homophobic attacks in the camps, particularly Kakuma, mean the government must take precautions under the Shirika Plan, said Craig Paris, executive director of the Refugee Coalition of East Africa. 'If it is happening in controlled and secured camps, it might as well get worse in open communities unless the government takes deliberate steps to address it,' Paris said. Kamya Chrisestom, a refugee in Kakuma who was attacked, said refugees were worried about their safety. 'Will my security as a transgender be assured when we mix with the host community?' she asked. LGBTQ groups had petitioned donor agencies to pressure the Kenyan government to incorporate gay rights into the Shirika Plan, said Ibrahim Kazibwe, founder of the Community Empowerment and Self-Support Organization. 'President Ruto said that the implementation of the plan will be centered on human rights, and we hope that those rights will as well include LGBTQ rights,' Kazibwe said. The UNHCR has worked closely with the government to ensure that 'no group is left behind,' said Njoki Mwangi, a spokesperson for the agency in Nairobi. 'Key among the guiding principles was inclusivity and non-discrimination on the bases of race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, gender or any other grounds,' Mwangi told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. But many gay refugees point to years-long delays in the government's processing of their asylum bids as a major obstacle to securing their rights. Constance, 32, lives in the town of Limuru northwest of Nairobi with 15 other Ugandans, who are all waiting for a decision on their asylum applications. He does not know why his bid has not been approved since he first applied eight years ago, and the delay has worn him down. 'I underwent the last vetting process in 2023, but I am yet to receive feedback,' he said. 'I lost hope along the way.'
Zawya
29-03-2025
- Politics
- Zawya
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' (UNHCR) Grandi hails launch of Kenya's landmark refugee inclusion plan
The Government of Kenya launched a groundbreaking initiative on Friday to improve the lives of more than 830,000 refugees and asylum-seekers and their generous hosts, by transitioning the country's refugee camps into integrated settlements where refugees and local communities enjoy greater economic opportunities and access to improved health, education and other services together. The Shirika Plan – which translates to 'cooperation' in Swahili – is the culmination of years of work towards greater refugee inclusion, led by the Government of Kenya together with local authorities, with strong support from UNHCR and other UN agencies, donors, humanitarian and development partners and the private sector. The initiative marks a significant development in the country's move toward implementing policies to improve the lives of refugees and their long-time hosts. For more than three decades, Kenya has generously hosted refugees and asylum-seekers, primarily from Somalia, South Sudan, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The country is home to two of the world's largest refugee camps – Dadaab in Garissa County, which hosts over 420,000 people, and Kakuma in Turkana County, home to more than 300,000. Under the Shirika Plan, these refugee-hosting areas will be developed into municipalities to increase economic opportunities, education, health, and essential services for both refugees and local communities. This initiative aligns with Kenya's commitment to the Global Compact on Refugees and builds upon legislative milestones such as the Refugees Act of 2021. UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, congratulated the Government of Kenya on the plan at a launch event in Nairobi. 'Kenya is showing the world that a story of cooperation, inclusion and hope is not only possible, but also necessary and of advantage to all,' Grandi said. 'Shirika recognizes that solutions, which shift away from refugee dependency on humanitarian aid towards greater self-reliance, are possible. UNHCR is committed to supporting the government of Kenya to now turn this innovative plan, into a reality.' In his keynote address at the plan's launch in Nairobi, Kenya's President, H.E. Dr. William Samoei Ruto, reaffirmed the country's pledge to work towards long-term solutions for the hundreds of thousands displaced people living in Kenya, often for decades. 'The Shirika Plan now gives us a framework to collaborate more ambitiously and pursue historic achievements that will guarantee hope and dignity for refugees, and give host communities due recognition,' said President Ruto, calling the plan 'our bold, homegrown solution, which amplifies the African Union's call for African solutions to not only Africa's problems but also global challenges as well.' UNHCR joins the Government of Kenya to appeal to all States, financial institutions and private organizations and development partners to continue to provide support and financing to this important to ensure the full realization of the Shirika Plan and improve the lives of refugees and their Kenyan hosts. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
