Theirs is a desperate flight from conflict.

They are exhausted; their days are punctuated by vivid memories of murdered civilians and burning houses. There is a sense of loss and resignation. Wearily, they join hundreds of thousands of others on the long walk to flee the violence of civil war.

This is the frightening reality of Somalia today for the people crowding into refugee camps on the front lines in that country.

Two decades of war, 10 years of drought

It is one of the world’s worst refugee crises. Somalia has been plagued by violence and is without a functioning government since 1991. Persistent drought has destroyed crops and worsened the situation. To date, more than two million people have left for other countries or are displaced within Somalia.

Many are living in overcrowded and unsanitary camps. They have no more than cardboard and scraps of cloth to shelter them. They lack beds, blankets, food and medicine.

UNHCR on the frontlines

UNHCR seeks to provide protection on many fronts to Somalis who have been scattered by war. There are frontlines in five nearby countries where Somalis can find shelter in refugee camps. UNHCR provides protection to more than 530,000 Somali refugees in Kenya, Yemen, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Uganda. But it isn’t enough. In Djibouti, for example, 25 per cent of the refugees still do not have tents. Living conditions in this semi-arid desert area are harsh due to the high temperatures. So here, UNHCR must deliver 2,600 tents as soon as possible.

Every year, tens of thousands of Somalis pay smugglers to bring them across the Gulf of Aden to the coast of Yemen—one of the poorest countries in the Middle East. Many never make it. Those who survive receive aid in UNHCR’s reception centres close to the Yemeni shore. Within days, they must then choose between relocating to Kharaz camp, two hours away; or to nearby urban areas. At Kharaz, particular attention is paid to identifying and helping the most vulnerable cases.

The displaced within Somalia

There is also a frontline inside Somalia, where the internally displaced—more than 1.5 million men, women and children—seek safety. One of these is in Bossasso, a crowded commercial town in Somalia's northeast Puntland region. They live here in shacks made of cardboard boxes. They need tents, but they also need kitchen sets, jerry cans and sleeping mats. And constant violence makes it challenging for UNHCR to deliver them. The UN Refugee Agency works intensively to provide basic provisions and shelter. We urgently need your support so we can extend our reach to all those still in need.

Your donation is needed

$78 registers 150 displaced to assess their needs and unite families.

$240 delivers a sturdy, all-weather tent to shelter a family of five.

$500 provides survival kits for 5 Somali families.

Click here to donate.