GALLERIES

In Flight from Darfur: Gaga Refugee Camp, Chad

Since early 2005, Africare has been involved with the transfer of refugees from Darfur, Sudan, to camps in northeastern Chad. Local Chadian staff provide emergency humanitarian assistance to the refugees through a wide variety of activities and projects, including:

  • the distribution of essential food and non-food items
  • construction of infrastructure
  • training and provision of services in areas such as agriculture, livestock production, forestry and water-and-sanitation

Gaga is the 12th UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) camp in eastern Chad. It is located near Adré, about 60 kilometers from eastern Chad's main city of Abeché. By the end of December 2007, the Africare-managed Gaga Refugee Camp housed some 17,500 Darfurian refugees.

 

 

View of Gaga Refugee Camp from a hilltop near a water station. Water is pumped,
purified and stored in the containers at the top of the hill. The station is a main source of
clean water for the camp.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.

Three children stand next to a latrine cover at Gaga Refugee Camp. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) requires refugees to be involved in aspects of running and maintaining the camp. For example, refugees build their own latrine covers. The young woman in the background is carrying a 15-liter water container: a similar water container is distributed to each refugee as he or she arrives. Then, the refugees collect water from taps around the camp.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.

 

A woman and child stop to purchase a selection of meats at the Gaga Camp market. Men bring their cattle and sheep to the market for sale as a means of generating income. The prices in the market are a lot lower than in nearby Abeché, so visitors to the camp often stock up on vegetables and meat when there.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.

 

Two children kneel by a display of vegetables at the Gaga Camp market. Women and men are provided with one hectare of land apiece to cultivate vegetables. Garlic and onions are popular, as are tomatoes (dried and fresh) and limes.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved

 


Two men and children are working on their garden plots in Gaga Camp. Interested families are given plots where they can grow vegetables (garlic, onions, tomatoes, peppers, etc), which they use to supplement their diets and earn additional income from market sales.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.

 


A home in Gaga Camp constructed with handmade bricks; the roof is made of a tent.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.

The lid of a small portable stove reflects images of an Africare employee and a Gaga Camp manager. The stove was on purchased with funds from the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Population and Refugee Migration.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.


A man makes oil from peanuts. The oil is sold at the Gaga Camp market, then used for cooking by the refugees.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.

 

 

A scene at Gaga Camp.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.


In Gaga Camp, a garden. It belongs to a refugee who was among the first to move to the camp five years ago.
Copyright M. Jeter, Africare/Chad, 2007. All rights reserved.

 

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