In Kakuma refugee camp in northwestern Kenya, girls are empowered by their newfound passion for computer coding. Every day is a hot day in Kakuma refugee camp, located in the arid desert of north-western Kenya. Underneath a blue sky, three girls in gingham (lightweight plain-woven cotton cloth, typically checked in white and a bold color) school uniforms gather together.
The camp is home to more than 186,000 residents who are primarily from the Horn and Great Lakes region of Africa. Originally from Burundi, South Sudan, and Somalia, their backgrounds vary widely.
Their ambitions may lead them to divergent futures as well; one wants to be a journalist, another a software engineer, and the third a poet. But right now, they share a common interest that they are very excited about: computer coding. As part of a regional program, “Women’s Leadership, Empowerment, Access and Protection in Crisis Response,” funded by the Government of Japan, UN Women supported a project in the Kakuma camp and Kalobeyei settlement that reached 2,850 people in just one year (2018 – 2019).
The project equipped women in the camp and host communities with livelihood and leadership skills. It also supported advocacy efforts to prevent violence against women, improve girls’ access to technology and involve more women in humanitarian action.
