I was privileged to have spent last week in Tanzania having been invited to work alongside the charity, Plan International, and MPs from other parties to visit a refugee camp. Whilst I have travelled to East Africa previously for business, I have never seen humanitarian work in action or the impact overseas aid money has on the ground. Tanzania hosts large numbers of refugees fleeing from dangerous situations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi. Before making the trip I knew very little about the situation in Burundi but in a nutshell in 2015 the elected President decided to change the constitution to extend the maximum length of time he or somebody else could serve as President. Previously limited to two terms this would mean instead of stepping down at the next election in 2020, he could continue until 2034. The political situation is tribal and many people protested against this change. The regime cracked down on dissent activity, so those that opposed change to the constitution were forced to flee in fear of their lives. Tanzania is a large country, nearly four times the size of the UK, and the camps are situated in the north-west of the country near to the borders with Burundi and Rwanda.
The Nduta camp that I visited is now the size of a small town with 108,000 people living there. Situated remotely it took four planes and almost 24 hours to get there. This was no jolly junket! The camp is vast and provides shelter, medical care, education, water and food to its occupants who are not permitted to leave the camp or work. The conditions are difficult, and many people feel hopeless as their lives are “suspended” not able to go home but not able to get on either. Plan International focus on child protection, education in emergencies and youth vocational skills. Despite the desperate situation it was humbling to see children continuing their schoolwork and young adults learning skills such as woodwork, basket weaving and pottery by hand. There was also a touch of normality with a highly contested football match with many of the young people supporting Manchester City and my home team, Liverpool. A poignant reminder of the power of sport. Many young people, girls in particular, face significant child protection issues; rape is all too common as is child marriage and teenage pregnancy. The aid workers and charities do an amazing job of helping people in the most desperate of situations.
Alongside Tanzanians, I met people from all over the world including the UK, India, South Africa, Australia, France, Canada and the US who give so much to those with so little. Clearly, a long-term solution is required as nobody would want to continue to live in a refugee camp. I was glad to see UK aid in action and thankful that we are a country that provides support for emergency responses to manmade or natural disasters.