In December 2021, a new outbreak of violence in the province of Logone-Birni in north-eastern Cameroon caused thousands of people to seek refuge in neighbouring Chad, crossing the Chari River to reach the outskirts of the Chadian capital N'Djamena.
This conflict is the result of growing inter-communal tensions around the Lake Chad Basin. People are struggling with immense challenges including endemic poverty, weak public services and chronic insecurity caused by protracted armed conflicts. These areas face increasing environmental degradation, further fuelling food insecurity and competition for scarce resources.
The Kalambari camp and its 27 sites, 30 km from the capital, houses over 10,500 Cameroonian refugees – mostly women and children. In the searing heat of this arid area, EU humanitarian partners provide cash assistance to cover the basic needs of the most vulnerable families.
EU funding also goes to preventing further deterioration of the health situation, by promoting good practices, and by increasing access to safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, and health care.
We visited the Kalambari camp last May to meet first-hand the Cameroonian refugees. These are their stories.
A young woman walks by a school in the Kalambari refugee camp in Chad. The camp was setup with the help of EU humanitarian aid after people in Cameroon fled violence and migrated to neighboring Chad. The camp hosts over 10,000 refugees.
Jimrabew Bertin and his little brother Tolbo Samson help construct a home in the Kalambari refugee camp in Chad. With little hope of returning home anytime soon, refugees are building durable shelters for their families.
A woman carries a solar panel on her head as she walks through the Kalambari refugee camp in Chad on May. Refugees struggle to get by, despite an active market that hosts improvised shops.
A family looks on as a bucket is filled with water in the Kalambari refugee camp in Chad. Safe drinking water, provided by EU-funded humanitarian agencies, is among the very first needs for refugees’ survival.
Alice Anita walks to her home in the Kalambari refugee camp in Chad. The camp mostly shelters women and children, as men look for new livelihoods in the region.
Deinaba Hamid looks on in her home in the Kalambari camp in Chad. This year’s exceptional food crisis in the Lake Chad region is straining humanitarian resources to assist refugees.
Fina Hakasu teaches a French class in the Kalambari refugee camp in Chad. Maintaining access to education during a humanitarian crisis is essential to children’s development, well-being, and future.
