Kakuma Refugee Camp - Isma’s Story

North Western Kenya is home to Kakuma Refugee Camp, where more than 200,000 displaced people find themselves.

Amongst them is Isma; arriving in 2012 from Khartoum, Sudan, she embarked on a path fraught with challenges at the tender age of 11.

Leaving her parents behind in a country torn apart by conflict she, along with her siblings, sought refuge in Kakuma.

Reflecting on her arduous arrival to Kenya, Isma recounts, “It was a very difficult journey, we struggled to get here with so many challenges.

The decision to leave her homeland was rooted in the pursuit of peace, as she remarks, “I left my country to look for where the peace is so that I could make myself comfortable.”

The turmoil in Sudan, has unfortunately been an ever-going state of affairs from the Second Sudanese Civil War to the War in Darfur.

As tensions flared in April last year, more than 1.5 million of her compatriots have followed the park Isma and her siblings took.

She explains the conflicts has rendered life there unbearable: “The situation in Khartoum currently is very bad because, as you guys hear the rumours or see the news, the war has disrupted everything there.

“As a matter of fact, nothing is left there now.”

Within the confines of Kakuma, Isma finds solace in education and camaraderie.

With her three sisters and two brothers by her side, all under the age of 30, she has had to navigate the complexities of a crowded school system.

With 280 students in one class and a lack of resources, studying at Kakuma is far from simple.

“The life of a school is very difficult,” she acknowledges.

“Sometimes you get into the class in the morning, you can get nothing to eat, water to drink, or anything. But you just have to focus on your studies so that you get what you want.”

Despite the challenges of being in Kakuma, she downplays their magnitude simply because she is safer than she was in Sudan, stating, “There are some challenges, but it's not that big of a deal.”

Digital access, however, hasn't always been easily accessible in the 12 years Isma has been in the camp.

“Actually, when I was in school, we didn't have any internet there or computers. We've just been taught on the board,” the 23-year-old recalls.

She seized an opportunity in 2023 to join a computer course within the community set up by grassroots organisation Advocacy Initiative for Youth Development.

Isma wants to build a website in which she can tell her story, which thanks to the internet that unconnected.org have helped to support could become a reality for her.

“I joined the computer course here in the community to pursue my dreams because I would like to be a computer expert so that I can do my own research,” she said.

 Her dreams do not just lie in her professional or creative ambitions but also where she envisages herself geographically.

“I would love to live in a very nice place like the USA, Australia, or Germany.”

Though she acknowledges that this is a slow process as the journey to such destinations is laden with bureaucratic obstacles.

“It is very difficult for us to leave the camp. It is a very long process to get a visa,” she sighs.

Amidst her dreams, Isma confronts the stark realities of progressing with her ICT studies in Kakuma.

“The main challenge here is the electricity. It’s very problematic most of the time when it rains.”

Furthermore, as a woman, Isma faces additional hurdles, as participants on the course have to pay their way.

“We don't have any support as women here, we just struggle on our own.”

Yet, in the midst of adversity, Isma’s determination matched with the opportunities that learning new skills can give her, leaves her with plenty of hope for a better future.