Update: UN Agencies Seek Sh1.16 Billion for 50,000 Ethiopians Who Fled to Moyale, Kenya
Kenya and its partners are now planning for as many as 80,000 people, and a Christian advocacy group says believers are among the families who ran with little food or clothing.
See where this is ›MOYALE, Kenya —
U.N. agencies are appealing for Sh1.16 billion, or $8.9 million, to help about 50,000 people who fled clashes in Ethiopia and crossed into Moyale in northern Kenya, the Daily Nation reported Monday, Nov. 2. The money would cover three months of food, shelter, water and sanitation, registration and protection.
See where this is ›Fatima Mohammed-Cole, the UNHCR representative in Kenya, said the refugee agency is working on the appeal with the International Organization for Migration and UNICEF. UNHCR is gathering emergency supplies for nearly 12,000 people and plans to do more as needs grow.
The International Organization for Migration said the Kenyan government and its partners are planning a response for up to 80,000 people, and it cautioned that arrival figures are preliminary. Nomagugu Ncube, the agency's chief of mission in Kenya, said an urgent priority is “meeting their immediate needs, while also supporting the communities who are now hosting thousands.” Most of those arriving are being sheltered by local communities.
Malik Adan, who heads the Upper Eastern Region for the Kenya Red Cross, said people were still arriving in Moyale town. The largest camp has been moved out of town and “has about 5,000 people, mostly women and children,” Adan said. He described relative calm on Friday afternoon after gunshots were heard across the border that morning. The Red Cross also reported that the first baby born to a refugee mother was delivered safely at a local hospital on Friday.
International Christian Concern reported Nov. 2 that Christian families are among those who fled, many without enough food or clothing and unsure whether they can return. Some now depend on aid or on help from relatives, churches and neighbors. “We never imagined we would have to leave our homes like this,” one displaced believer told the group, which withheld the person's name. A man identified as Dadi said he fled without his family and does not know where they are. The group said the World Council of Churches has called on Ethiopian authorities to protect Christian communities.
What we don't know yet: How many of those who crossed are Christians has not been reported, and Watchman News could not independently confirm the accounts International Christian Concern published. The aid agencies say their arrival figures may change, and no total for the appeal's funding so far was given.
