Chasing away shadows with stories in the light
“Story telling is our tradition so it is very important,” explains 40-year-old Somali refugee Zhara. “In Somalia we
couldn’t always sit outside telling stories or talking, because we feared what could happen and you could not
raise issues or discuss things openly.”
For refugees like Zhara, so much more than tradition was at risk of being lost during the bitter fighting and
violence brought by Al Shabaab in her homeland of Somalia. But it is tradition and innovation that is helping
Zhara and her community come together again.
Originally from Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, Zhara was collecting medicine for her youngest child when a
bomb blast hit her home. Her husband and six children were killed. Bereft and traumatised, Zhara somehow
made it to a refugee camp in Dadaab, Kenya. With dedicated medical care, eventually she began to rebuild her
life. Today, Zhara lives with her new husband, who is a teacher, and their son in the Hilaweyn refugee camp in
Dollo Ado, Ethiopia.
Zhara’s story of immense loss is unfortunately not unique – most of the families in the refugee camps in Ethiopia
have lost loved ones in the war or its aftermath – and, combined with the difficulties of living in the nonelectrified camps, life is not always easy.
But, with the support of the UNHCR’s partner the IKEA Foundation, lighting for shelters and refugee camp
streets in the form of solar street lights and lanterns, are starting to help Zhara and her community come
together and mend past trauma.
“No one knew each other before but now we really know each other as a community,” says Zhara. “Where we
came from in Somalia there were street lights. With these new solar street lights we can sit outside and see who
is going past. We can make our stories, we can talk and discuss. Before we were in fear and the majority of the
people were staying inside. This is making our community stronger.”
“Sometimes we sit separately and other times we all come together and do the same. Sometimes people are
telling stories like it is a dream of theirs… so they might talk about what it might be like in another place, like in
America. Sometimes mothers talk about what they are supposed to do or sometimes you tell a story that just
makes people laugh or talk about a hero, like a world champion runner. Sometimes we tell stories about animals
which some people have never seen.”
As well as helping to bring unity to her community, the new light sources, help to make the camps safer in the
long, dark nights: “In the night snakes and scorpions come. We can’t see them and then you fear them but now
we see them in the distance. When people go to the toilet they can see also. We would like more lights to really
cover the areas more evenly.”
With the support of the new IKEA ‘Brighter Lives for Refugees’ campaign many more solar street lights, indoor
solar lanterns and other renewable energy technologies will be provided to refugees like Zhara and her
community in UNHCR refugee camps in Ethiopia, Chad, Jordan and Bangladesh, ensuring that many more
refugees benefit from the huge improvements they bring.
For every IKEA LEDARE light-bulb purchased in IKEA stores during the campaign period, the IKEA Foundation will
donate Є1 to UNHCR to deliver better lighting, renewable energy, and primary education in UNHCR refugee
camps.
*Please note that all names have been changed to protect identity
40-year-old Somali refugee Zhara (red) stands with her young son and husband Amir, a teacher, in the Hilaweyn
refugee camp in Dollo Ado, Ethiopia © UNHCR/D. Corcoran
40-year-old Somali refugee Zhara (red) stands with her young son and husband Amir, a teacher, in the Hilaweyn
refugee camp in Dollo Ado, Ethiopia © UNHCR/D. Corcoran