On May 17th, 2023, the Malawi Government initiated the forced relocation of refugees from cities and towns back to Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa. This exercise was marred by numerous human rights abuses against the refugees, including beatings, rape, extortion, and theft, among other atrocities from which the refugees have yet to recover. The relocation […]
Inua Advocacy has submitted an appeal to the African Union (AU) Human Rights Commission, specifically addressing the AU Special Rapporteurs on Human Rights Defenders and on Refugees, regarding the unresolved human rights violations against refugees, asylum seekers, and refugee rights advocates in Malawi. Inua Advocacy has been directly targeted, facing harassment, bans, and threats that […]
The Commissioner for Refugees recently admitted the presence of firearms in Dzaleka Refugee Camp and the rising human trafficking activities that pose a threat to national security. He disclosed severe manpower shortages, with just one security officer and four guards managing a camp of approximately 56,000 refugees and asylum seekers, along with 15 police officers […]
The Government of Malawi has extended parametric insurance coverage to refugees, supported by the African Risk Capacity Group and the KfW Development Bank, resulting in a payout of US$407,668. This initiative addresses the El NiƱo-induced drought that affecting the whole country including Dzaleka Refugee Camp and the Dowa district. Malawi’s model, the first in Africa […]
On the night of July 17th, there was two hours of continuous gunfire at the Dzaleka Refugee Camp. The disturbance was initially believed to be a police raid on Ethiopian-run human trafficking operations, but it was later confirmed as an operation by the Malawi Defense Force (MDF). WhatsApp audio messages from Dzaleka residents indicate that […]
On May 17th, we commemorated the one-year anniversary of a brutal refugee relocation exercise enforced by the Malawi Government. This operation forcibly moved 2,296 refugees and asylum seekers, including 765 families, to the overcrowded Dzaleka Camp, which now houses over 56,000 refugees despite a capacity for only 12,000. Documented human rights abuses during this relocation […]
On March 11th, 2024, violence erupted at Dzaleka Refugee Camp between Ethiopian and Congolese nationals. The incident resulted into the vandalism of several homes belonging to Ethiopians and left several Congolese wounded from machete and knife attacks allegedly by Ethiopian assailants. These tensions date back to December 2023 when internal strife arose within the Ethiopian […]
The final outcome of research carried out recently in Dzaleka, in partnership with the University of Malawi, with funding from Southern New Hampshire University.
Refugee entrepreneurship forms part of the informal economy of Malawi, despite a national encampment policy that denies refugees freedom of movement and of employment outside Dzaleka refugee camp. Using a sample of refugee entrepreneurs working in an urban and in a rural location, this research utilizes a quantitative method to analyze refugee-owned enterprises in Malawi.