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Heavy rains cause significant damage in CAR refugee camps

Countries
Chad
+ 1 more
Sources
OCHA
Publication date

Highlights

• Heavy rains in early June have destroyed tents and flooded transit sites and temporary camps in N’Djamena and southern Chad.

• New arrivals from CAR continue, including some 200 people in Chari Baguirmi Region (southwest Chad).

• Preparations are ongoing to repatriate some 5,000 Chadians from Cameroon.

• On 14 and 17 June, the transfer of people began from the Doyaba and Sido transit sites to the Maingama temporary camp; transfers to Danamadja are temporarily on hold.

• Humanitarian partners raise concerns over reports of gender-based violence incidents and sexual aggressions in sites in the south.

 Over 110,000 People registered in Chad having arrived from CAR since 2013. (Source: Beneficiary Nu

61,000 People displaced from current CAR crisis remaining in sites and camps. (Source: IOM)

25,368 Children in primary school age in the transit sites and camps. (Source: Education Cluster)

43,071 People who received food assistance by WFP. (Source: WFP)

Situation Overview

Heavy rains are causing significant damage in the transit sites and temporary camps, destroying people’s shelter and few possessions, and putting them at greater risk of disease. The rains are requiring agencies to respond to these needs, challenging efforts to accelerate the construction of the temporary camps at a time when available resources are already limited. On 2 June, rains over Zafaye temporary camp in the Gaoui outskirt of N'Djamena destroyed nearly two thirds of the tents and flooded the camp, as drainage proved insufficient. Over 230 people are now forced to live in a communal hangar which has already been damaged by intense UV radiation and heat over the last couple of months. In southern Chad, the Doyaba transit site was also flooded by heavy rain on 2 June. The tent of the health centre run by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) was washed away. A week earlier, on 25 and 26 May, rains had destroyed 387 tents in Doyaba transit site and 580 tents in Sido transit site.

The building of shelter and water and sanitation infrastructure continues to be the top priority for the temporary camps to protect people from the ongoing rains and prevent an outbreak of water-borne diseases. The NGO Agence de Développement Economique et Social (ADES) is currently finalizing a contract with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to build 5,460 shelters. Additional tents will be built in the temporary camps (Danamadja: 1,500; Maingama: 2,900; Zafaye: 210) and in the existing transit sites (Sido: 350, Mbitoye: 300, Mbaibokoum: 200).

As the temporary camps become ready, agencies begin to undertake the transfer of populations from the transit sites. On 14 June, around 700 people were transferred from Doyaba to Maingama temporary camp in Moyen Chari. On 17 June, another 700 people were transferred from Sido to Maingama. This will allow the ‘simultaneous’ decongesting of both transit sites, with the transfers focusing on the most vulnerable people - notably people who arrived recently in Chad and live in makeshift shelters. While progress is being made in transferring people to Maingama, the movement of people to the Danamadja temporary camp has been put on hold. The relocation of some 6,000 people from the Doba transit site to Danamdja has been postponed to ensure that adequate shelter is in place at the time of their arrival. Currently, some 6,000 of the nearly 11,200 people in Danamadja are still awaiting a shelter. An additional 30 hectares has been identified by local authorities to expand the capacity of the camp, so that it can accommodate people more from Doba.

Despite the closure of the CAR-Chad border, new people continue to arrive. Some 200 people (62 per cent women and children) arrived in and around Kouno, Chari Baguirmi region, from 16 May to 7 June, in extreme vulnerability. They had fled Yaloké near the city of Bouar in CAR. According to information they provided, 18 members of their community died during the trek to Chad that lasted several weeks. Their presence puts additional pressure on already scarce local resources, such as the only water pump in the village of Démocratie, whose population of 40 inhabitants quadrupled with these latest arrivals. A rapid assessment mission undertaken by the NGO Alerté Santé/ALIMA and OCHA on 7 June recommended food distributions to the returnees and the people of the host community, distributions of tarps to improve their makeshift shelters, and the provision of water and sanitation services in the community.

The humanitarian community is also preparing to assist some 5,000 Chadians who have requested evacuation to Chad, from Cameroon where they initially fled to. They are currently living in dire conditions on the transit sites of Garoua Boulai and Kentzou in the border area of Cameroon and CAR. Most of them arrived in Cameroon three to four months ago.

Humanitarian partners are concerned about sexual and gender-based violence in the transit sites and temporary camps. On 13 June, the Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) sub-cluster presented initial findings from a two week mission covering all transit sites and temporary camps in the south. SGBV incidents and sexual aggressions were reported in all sites, especially two sites that are located next to military camps. In Doba transit site, the mission revealed that many underage marriages are being arranged for girls between 12 and 17 years of age in order to secure the dowry of around 150,000 FCFA (US$300) for their families, often to buy additional food. The mission put in place a monitoring team in Danamadja, met with authorities and advocated to have more female police officers deployed to the sites. Other protection issues are also being looked at closely, including the protection of unaccompanied children.

Humanitarian partners continue their efforts to register and profile the returnees. From 30 May to 7 June, a complementary registration was undertaken jointly by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), World Food Programme (WFP) and Médécins Sans Frontières (MSF) at the Sido site. The process, undertaken by a team of 50 people, confirmed the presence of some 19,000 people (4,000 households) in and around the transit site - approximately 6,000 people or one third more than previously registered. Additional information about the population was also collected, and is in the process of being compiled. The number of people who arrived in Sido and built makeshift huts to the east and west of the actual transit site without being registered made this operation an important prerequisite to plan further humanitarian assistance. A profiling exercise was also undertaken by UNHCR in the Danamadja and Gaoui camps.

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.