A Day in the Life at Dadaab

1. A Day in the Life at Dadaab Photos by: Jonathan Ernst for Lutheran World Relief

2. The drought and famine in East Africa rages on. Millions stand at the brink of starvation. Many have flocked to the Dadaab refugee complex in Kenya — the world’s largest refugee camp — where Lutheran World Relief and its partner, the Lutheran World Federation, work to meet the needs of the weary and hungry masses.

3. “Our livestock were all washed away by drought,” says Alima Ali Abdi, a mother of three. Her family fled to Dadaab after losing everything in Somalia.

4. Several successive crop failures have driven rural families in Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia and Djibouti to the brink of starvation. Since January, hundreds of thousands of people, mostly Somalis, have arrived at Dadaab in search of refuge. REFUGE

5. The Dadaab refugee complex was designed to host 90,000 refugees. Camp population is now rapidly approaching 500,000 people. CRAMPED CONDITIONS

6. One critical project for LWR and LWF is to provide water to people waiting outside the complex and to communities surrounding Dadaab. LWR and LWF have worked together in Dadaab since 2008, connecting vulnerable refugees vital services in the camps. PERSERVERANCE

7. Many Somalis don’t survive the journey by foot to Dadaab. This family is happy they made it and will now receive food rations, water, shelter supplies and other vital services. TRANSITIONING

8. The elderly, unaccompanied children and female-headed households are all vulnerable in refugee camps. LWR and LWF work to ensure their needs are met first. THE MOST VULNERABLE OF THE VULNERABLE

9. Ambiya’s son, Hamza, was one day old when she set off from Somalia, bound for Dadaab. Upon arrival, Ambiya received an LWR Baby Care Kit to help care for her son. AMBIYA

10. Children have been especially affected by the drought and food crisis. Many arrive to Dadaab malnourished and in dire need of medical attention. HUNGER

11. Many other children arrive unaccompanied and in need of care. In just one week, LWF identified 213 refugee children separated from their families and are working to reunite them with family. ORPHANED

12. Many new arrivals use whatever materials they can find to build shelter until they receive tents and other shelter materials as registered camp residents. COMMUNITY BUILDING

13. Women carry firewood for cooking back to their households. Many have lost children to hunger. But they press on, determined to keep their remaining families safe and healthy. A WOMAN’s WORK

14. Food is an urgent need of new arrivals to Dadaab, but people also need water, shelter, medical care and more. LWR and LWF are working to help connect vulnerable refugees to the services they need. MOUTHS TO FEED

15. “Even people who have almost nothing are finding ways to share what little they do have to bind themselves together into new families.” Jonathan Ernst, freelance photographer and journalist who traveled to Dadaab for LWR. A PEOPLE UNITED

16. Garmamo has lived in her mud hut in Dadaab for more than 20 years, since fleeing violence in her native Somalia. She dreams of going home, but first she hopes for an end to the violence and drought. GARMAMO

17. “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late…”Mark 6:35 As people of faith, we must reach out to our brothers and sisters in need in East Africa. Be a witness to Christ’s compassion by walking with East Africans through this crisis and toward a better future. PAST THE POINT OF HEADLINES

18. LWR needs to raise $3 million to carry out a long-term response to fight hunger for good in East Africa. Join us by giving a gift to LWR’s East Africa Drought fund. Your gifts will be a blessing to East Africa now and for a long time to come.

19. lwr.org/donate 800.597.5972 Lutheran World Relief is a ministry of U.S. Lutherans,serving communities living in poverty overseas.