About us
Talking about refugees
For decades hundred thousands of refugees have been living in the extremely isolated and remote part of Northern Kenya that listens to the fairytale-like name Kakuma. Waiting for a better turn in their life. Waiting to move on to more prosperous parts of this planet. Waiting to return to a less volatile, murderous and devastating home country. Or just waiting and hoping life in Kakuma will improve little by little.
For decades hundred thousands of refugees have been living in the extremely isolated and remote part of Northern Kenya that listens to the fairytale-like name Kakuma. Waiting for a better turn in their life. Waiting to move on to more prosperous parts of this planet. Waiting to return to a less volatile, murderous and devastating home country. Or just waiting and hoping life in Kakuma will improve little by little.
Refugees talking back
In the current heated debate on the ‘refugee crisis’, one hears a lot from politicians and ordinary people in host countries, but less from the people involved, from the refugees themselves, locked up in camps and settlements somewhere out there in Africa or Asia. What kind of people are they? Why did they flee their own country in the first place? What do they like and dislike about living in refugee camps? What are they doing there all day? How do they see their future?
100 refugees connect
In I-Am-Kakuma 100 people (to start with) from refugee camp Kakuma get the opportunity to speak out. To tell what is going on in their mind. To portray their daily life, what is dear to them and what is disgustful about living in a refugee camp. I-Am-Kakuma gives them a digital platform to tell their own stories in a creative way and to come into contact with people outside the camp who are interested in their stories. I-Am-Kakuma gives a face to ‘The Refugees’ locked up in camps far out there. And gives the worldwide audience the opportunity to directly communicate with ‘The Refugees’.
Behind I-am-Kakuma
I-am-Kakuma is an idea from Joelle Hangi and Geert van Asbeck. Joelle is a refugee (married with two children) from the Democratic Republic of Congo who has been living in Kakuma for 7 years now and who is studying economics and communications. Geert van Asbeck is a Dutch media expert living in Nairobi who has done similar projects before and who is visiting Kakuma regularly in the framework of volunteer work for PUM Netherlands senior experts, for REF FM Foundation and for other organizations. Joelle and Geert work closely together with Augustine Ondera Alfred, a young talented refugee (single) from South Sudan. They work with co-producers who scout and contact interesting refugees, host community members and humanitarian aid workers in Kakuma who then share their stories for I-am-Kakuma.
I-am-Kakuma is a partner of Action Africa Help International(AAHI)