Be Inspired

After months of violent confrontations between government forces and armed opposition groups, Sadiyo Hussein Haji, 39, her elderly mother and six children could not stand it anymore. On May 2009, they left Mogadishu. “My mother is ailing and she could not stand the constant sound of gunfire. The children also had difficulties sleeping at night,” she says.

During the conflict, her husband and two children, a girl aged 14 and a 16-year-old boy, went missing. “We stayed behind in our house for five days waiting to see whether they would return,” recalls Sadiyo. Unfortunately none of the missing family members showed up and Sadiyo decided to leave. Being so poor, she could not afford to hire a minibus for her family. After two days of walking, they managed to reach a relatively safe place in a settlement for internally displaced people.

But things were not easy in Ceelasha settlement. She had no money to rent a place to live and buy food. “We were reduced to begging. My mother was given a small shelter because of her poor health.” Fortunately, the family has recently been resettled to a recently constructed camp hosting new arrivals.

Mohammed Mahdi Ahmed works is a UNHCR field assistant at Ali Addeh Camp in Horn of Africa country of Djibouti. He tells us about his daily work with the refugees.

What do you do in Ali Addeh?
Mainly, I listen to the problems of the refugees and I try to solve them. More concretely, I help distribute food and non-food items to refugees and I coordinate with UNHCR’s partner organizations to make sure that refugees’ needs are addressed.

What is the current situation of the refugees in the camp?
Some people in Ali Addeh have been there for 19 years. Still, new people arrive every day from south-central Somalia who need our help. We have Somali, Ethiopian and Eritrean refugees, now totalling more than 11,000 people. In the camp they receive food and other relief items. They are also given access to medical services.

What are the most pressing needs?
Shelter is the most pressing need at the moment. The winds are so strong in the area that they destroy the shelter materials. Sometimes they can last for a month. In addition, the cold season is approaching so it is crucial for refugees to have proper shelter.

What is the most rewarding part of your job?
Seeing the relief on the face of a refugee that I have been able to help; this is the most rewarding part of my job and that is why I go to the camp every day.

Is there a particular incident or person that sticks in your mind?
Oh, there are many people I will never forget! For instance there is Anab, a refugee woman from south-central Somalia who has been living in the camp for 18 years. Anab is amazing; she comes every day to teach Somali at the camp school, while caring and cooking for her husband and her 13 children. She is a woman with courage. Hopefully she will soon be resettled in the United States.

Clare Auchterlonie, Los Angeles California, U.S.A

The one fundraising idea that stuck in my mind was to hold a Nintendo wii tennis tournament, as it was fun, low-cost, and had a wide appeal. As a transplant from London to LA - I still mostly know people from work, so I asked my boss if we could hold it one night after work in the office. He readily agreed and said he’d supply refreshments that we could then sell as his contribution.

I emailed my co-workers inviting them to compete for a trophy after paying an entrance fee of $10. I brought a gold engraved trophy from an online store for cheap and downloaded a bracket scoring card from a website for free.

On the night some people dropped out but still gave their entry fee, so we had 9 players in the end. Some people stayed to watch and donated for food and drinks.

I brought in my TV and wii system that we set up in the main office. After showing Ben Affleck’s Gimme Shelter, I explained about my involvement in the project and how tonight’s goal was to raise $200 for a tent Somalis forced to flee their homes.

The games were a lot of fun – one of my coworker’s niece was over visiting from the UK, and she whipped us all before beating my husband to win the trophy! All in all, people had a really good time – so much so they talked about doing it again next year, if not sooner.

The quickest and most fun way of helping UNHCR is to set up your own personal fundraising page, and get your friends and family to join in with you to Raise A Tent.

If you're not sure what to do to get the cash rolling in, there'll be plenty of ideas on this site very soon to help you get inspired.

Whatever you do though, remember that there are 2 million displaced Somalis, and your help - no matter how much you raise - will make a huge difference to them.

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