What is a refugee camp? A refugee camp is a temporary camp built to receive refugees. Hundreds of thousands of people may live in any one single camp. Usually they are built and run by a government, the United Nations, or international organizations, (such as the Red Cross) or non-governmental organisations Refugee camps are generally set up in an impromptu fashion and designed to meet basic human needs for only a short time People may stay in these camps, receiving emergency food and medical aid, until it is safe to return to their homes. In some cases, often after several years, other countries decide it will never be safe to return these people, and they are resettled in "third countries," away from the border they crossed

Life in a refugee camp The images of sprawling, smoke filled tent cities should be familiar to anyone who watches the nightly television news. However, reality of life in such a place - day after day, year after year - is almost unimaginable for most of us Each of the camps is organised according to structures adopted by the camps inhabitants, but refugee coordinators and work groups form part of its administration, and the division of responsibilities is made accordingly. Each refugee camp around the world is therefore unique, while presenting common structures and features While most people tend to think of camps when they think of refugees, it's worth noting that UNHCR actually prefers not to put people in large camps if it can be avoided. In many countries, for example, refugees live and work side-by-side with the local population. This is the preferred way of dealing with refugees. But when huge numbers of refugees suddenly converge on a neighbouring country, there is often little choice but to establish camps "Most people want more than what life in a refugee camp can offer. But just entering the refugee camp often destroys their desire to fight it out." Jose Riera (UNHCR Project officer for Costa Rica)

In the early 1990s, 25,000 of the 40,000 people in Kakuma refugee camp were children. Some of these children had not seen or heard from their parents for many years. Many of the children were aged between seven and 15 years old. The sad fact is that many of these boys had allegedly served as child soldiers. But refugee camps are not always islands of peace. The political problems between the rival tribes that were fighting in Sudan were just as strong in the camp. The children felt tied to the war. For these boys, nightmares about their past experiences were made worse by their feelings of responsibility, and sadly, many returned to Sudan to fight as soon as they were old enough. Example of life in a refugee camp

Anatomy of a refugee camp