Profile - Emile Belem
Emile Belem works as a Program Officer with UNHCR in Rwanda
What is the importance of shelter in a refugee emergency? How does it rank as a priority compared to other essentials like food and water?
Actually, providing shelter is one of the biggest priorities. When the refugees are crossing into the country, one of the first things they value is their security. It is very important to them that they have a place where they can feel secure – a place where they can shelter, a place where they can have their families and their possessions with them, where they are protected from bad weather, where it is easier to provide them with relief like food and where they can have their privacy.
How broadly do you define "providing shelter" for refugees?
Shelter is not just a matter of providing a roof over people’s heads. It is also providing what goes into the shelter to make the refugees’ life easier – sleeping mats, blankets, bedding, sometimes stoves. These are all part of making a shelter comfortable. If you are only providing like a roof and walls, and there are leaks or it is cold, you are not providing the shelter people need to be protected.
Can you give an example of a lack of shelter affecting the health of refugees?
Gihembe is a camp which is more than 2,000 metres in altitude and it is very cold. If you are just providing the plastic sheet and nothing else, the morbidity rate would rise. In 2003, there was a sudden increase in sickness in the hospital. It was due to respiratory infections and it was found that we were not providing enough blankets. When we increased these rations of blankets, the rate of respiratory illness infections went down. So all these things are part of providing good shelter and part of our mandate of protection.
