Students bring higher education to refugee camp

For many displaced Somali, Ethiopian and Sudanese refugees, escaping conflict in their home countries means starting over in Dadaab, Kenya—the world's largest refugee camp. Though its inhabitants live in shanties and huts made of refuse, Dadaab has in many ways become a bustling city unto itself, with its own markets, schools and social systems.

Dadaab's community has worked hard with international organizations to provide schooling as a safe space for young people. Until now, that opportunity has only been offered up to a secondary school level.

Enter the University of Toronto student group, The University of Toronto Refugee Alliance (UTRA) which is creating scholarships for higher education in Dadaab—the world's first post-secondary education system for displaced youth living in the refugee camp. (Read more about UTRA events here.)

The scholarships will fund resources for students, reduce transportation costs, and help facilitate a mentorship program as part of the educational program offered by Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER). 

Madiha Naseem is the co-founder and co-president of UTRA, and a second-year student at the Faculty of Medicine. She spoke with U of T News about the work of UTRA and the motivation behind this new scholarship.

What is UTRA?
UTRA was founded by me and Sarah Khan, a friend from undergrad. Its members range from medical students, health equity students and law students to peace and conflict studies students. Our faculty advisor is Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish from the Dalla Lana School of Public Health. UTRA's mission is to raise awareness about local and international refugee issues and serve as a platform for students to become actively involved in addressing these issues. We fundraise for refugee clinics and the UNHCR—the United Nations refugee agency— emergency refugee relief efforts. We also host talks by refugees and international aid workers, partner with other refugee support organizations and give students the opportunity to volunteer.

Why did you co-found UTRA?
I previously worked with a journalist for the UNHCR in Sukhrab refugee camp, Pakistan to provide computer classes for Afghan refugees living with polio. I personally think being forced out of your home to live in a life of fear in conflict and poverty is just horrendous. I want to work as a medical doctor in international policy to really make systematic changes that are needed. That’s my personal motivation for starting UTRA.

How has your time at U of T influenced your interest in international issues?
U of T was the place I found my passion for international aid. There is so much activism and student power to make a difference. I attended numerous talks hosted by U of T during my undergrad (and still do today!) about international development, and fell in love with the idea of a global citizenship. Even in medical school, international issues are very much emphasized, and our professors have so many cool stories to share about their work.

U of T really brought the global village to life for me. 

What is the scholarship program you’re contributing to in Kenya?
I attended a talk on women’s education and development in September 2012 at the Munk School of Global Affairs, and ran into the director of Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER), Wenona Giles. She is a professor of anthropology at York University and is spearheading a novel post-secondary education system for refugees as they live in the camps for internally displaced. The site they have chosen is Dadaab, Kenya; the world’s largest refugee settlement.

Wenona then met with Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, and together we decided to get U of T students on board to help with this great initiative. There are many programs that support refugees to come to developed countries and attain a degree, however, they often lead to a brain drain, and do very little to change the system in the camps. This program has the unique ability to allow these students to attain higher education while they reside in their camps, and in return, serve as valuable members to their own society later on.

UTRA will be fundraising to support ancillary costs associated with their education and is directly participating in helping these students attain their objectives by fundraising for the scholarships and helping U of T students mentor the students in Dadaab with post-secondary education.

Why did UTRA choose to sponsor this program?
After meeting with Wenona and other BHER members, and reading interviews with refugee students who wish to learn, UTRA is very happy to support this initiative. It meets our objective to engage in long-term sustainable projects. Investing in these students’ education, and giving them the tools to break the cycles of poverty and violence is a cause we strongly believe in.

What will the money for these scholarships be funding, specifically?
The Dadaab camp environment is still insecure, with violence and rapes occurring regularly. This, however, should not deter interested students from pursuing education. The money will support establishment of a mobile device system that students can use to minimize the amount of time spent travelling to and fro during dangerous times. It will also fund transportation costs from the camp to the university learning center, computer training costs, and any additional funds the students need to support their education.

So it's not a scholarship in the traditional sense?

There's no tuition for school, but every student there needs a stipend. The refugee students have no or very little money—basically they are all in need— they barely get by. The funds will provide money for a daily stipend for transportation to the learning centre, sanitary napkins and food for lunch. The stipend is essential. Mobile devices are part of also a fundraising effort and we are still deciding what types of technology BHER will use and support and what's most efficient (cell and/or other devices). We are working with BHER to ensure the funds are monitored, and our team member, Nirojini Sivachandran, will be in Kenya to deliver it this June. 

Brianna Goldberg is a writer for U of T News.