KAKUMA, Turkana West, Kenya, 29 November 2019 – Twenty youth from Kalobeyei integrated settlement and Kalobeyei town were taken through a week’s training on how to document their day to day life through photography and video.

The training, carried out by UN-Habitat staff,  demonstrated how photos and videos can be used to map urban development issues in the refugee and the host community settlements in Kalobeyei.

The Kalobeyei Settlement in Turkana West in north western Kenya, was set up in 2016 after the nearby refugee camp of Kakuma became too full. It is now home to over 36000 refugees.

A previous photography workshop was carried out in 2016 when the Kalobeyei integrated settlement was being established to encourage youth to take part in the planning and urban development of the area.

In the current workshop participants went out into the community to take photographs on various subjects including basic services, climate change, transport and housing. 

One of the participants from the local community, Hyvine Muya said, “This is the first time in my life that I have held and used a camera, and more importantly, used it to document the challenges faced by the people of Kalobeyei town and I am grateful to UN-Habitat for giving us this chance to acquire skills that we can use to better our lives through telling our stories.”

Ajiba Jaye, who is a refugee, said he had learnt a lot of new skills and aimed to “expand my work in both photography and filming to tell positive stories about our lives.”

David Kitenge, from UN-Habitat’s field office said: “The photography exercise is a very important tool in shaping the youths’ understanding and decision making regarding issues of urban development in this thematic area. We are delighted to see the youth come out of this training workshop empowered.”

The photographs taken by the participants were showcased in an exhibition on the last day of the workshop attended by refugees and the host community.