Angola: Agriculture and beekeeping give refugees hope

DW (English)

In Angola, food aid for thousands of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo has been cut in half. As donors retreated, the UN has launched farming and beekeeping projects to build sustainable food sources.

Transcript

00:00The people in this refugee camp in Northern Angola fled war at home in the Democratic Republic of Congo eight years ago.

00:09They have left behind the violence there, but the situation here is getting difficult.

00:14They get maize flour, a packet of salt and beans. This is all they have for two months.

00:21There's not enough to eat. It's simply not enough to fill us up.

00:24Organizers record what supplies they are able to give to the 6,000 refugees here.

00:34But it's getting tight for especially the most vulnerable.

00:41I have no husband. We have to talk about the food. It's simply not enough food.

00:46Joseph is a qualified electrician. He lives with his family and two orphans they took in. They are seven.

00:58I could work, but there isn't any work for me here. There isn't even electricity in the camp.

01:05Rations provided by the United Nations World Food Programme are half of what they used to be.

01:11The oil and soap rations have been cut completely.

01:15Many of the donor countries have dramatically reduced their aid.

01:19The U.S. in particular, but also many European countries.

01:23Humanitarian budgets this year are at an all-time low, despite rising need.

01:30Espinola Caribe is head of the World Food Programme in Angola.

01:34He admits what they are offering is not enough for people to survive on.

01:39Funding is a serious challenge that we are facing.

01:46But we cannot abandon those refugees.

01:49There is a lot of work that has been done when the refugees start coming here.

01:55And abandoning them in the halfway is not the right way to do.

02:01They have secured land for the refugees to grow their own food.

02:06The whole area is for about 300 families to grow on.

02:11Mama Anto, who lives in the camp, is responsible for the project.

02:15At some point, the food aid may stop altogether.

02:23Then what should we do?

02:24We have to farm for ourselves.

02:27Everyone who gets a piece of land here works hard to help their families and the community.

02:32She says each of the families gets a hectare to work on.

02:38The land is far from the refugee camp, but it gives them some self-sufficiency.

02:46We're not just growing rice.

02:48There are bananas and manioc.

02:50And we're also growing maize.

02:52We can't just eat rice.

02:53Growing on their own is the only other alternative to aid.

03:01The refugees are not allowed to get a job.

03:04The land they are farming has been provided by the Angolan government.

03:07You need to get government clearance.

03:13And then you need to engage the community to make sure that there is a community

03:18buy-in and acceptance before the refugees get land and then they start the work.

03:27And you need to make sure that also the community is not excluded from that.

03:34People living near the refugee camp also need help.

03:38It's a poor area with few opportunities.

03:42They benefit from the projects here.

03:44Local children go to the refugee camp school and some of their parents receive job training.

03:52Soba Monquambo is the leader of a small village nearby.

03:56Five of the 80 people in the village work with refugees keeping beehives.

04:03We've had two harvests already.

04:05That's very good for us.

04:06Honey is like medicine.

04:08Honey feeds our children.

04:09Honey improves our lives.

04:10In the early evening, these two new beekeepers make their rounds.

04:21I didn't know how all this worked.

04:24But the World Food Programme taught me.

04:27I love working outside.

04:29I like working a lot.

04:33I learned it even at my age.

04:36I can support my family with the honey.

04:44The aim is to train more people and build more beehives.

04:49More honey for themselves, the community and even to sell.

04:55They feel they are contributing to save their dignity.

05:00Even though the border is not far away, the refugees don't want to go home.

05:12They want to stay here with their new neighbors.

05:15They are all focusing building a new future for themselves.

05:19I know.

05:20Thanks.

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