UN High Commissioner for Refugees visits Kenya

Barham Salih first official visit as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, he called for stronger global support to develop the solutions refugees need to rebuild their lives.

After visiting Kakuma municipality in northern Kenya, Salih acknowledged Kenya’s decades-long generosity in hosting refugees and the farsighted policies that allow refugees to work and access healthcare, education and financial services.

The Shirika Plan, led by the Government of Kenya, is a bold framework to move from humanitarian assistance toward refugee self-reliance and peaceful co-existence with host communities. Under the Plan, refugees can access legal identity papers, work permits, mobile money and banking services, public education and universal health care. Over 800,000 refugees and asylum seekers live in Kenya.