•The Refugee Affairs Secretariat in October conducted new registration of 1,281 urban refugees.
•Refugees continue to struggle to obtain the most basic authorisations that would enable us to become productive members of society.
Julian Akanke* leans forward, his face is animated as he talks about his life in Kenya.
When he first started telling his story to the Star, however, his arms were crossed as he offered sparse details.
"I left Congo at age seven on foot, and began travelling North, through the Central African Republic, Sudan and Ethiopia," he said.
After two years of wandering, Akanke found safety in Kenya, he has friends, a place to live and received quality education.
"I settled in Kenya in 1999, when I was nine. I started home-schooling to fit into my new environment," he recounts.
It is easy to imagine that walking from Congo to Kenya was the most difficult part of his life.
However, arriving in Kenya brought a new set of challenges that are harder for him to escape.
Akanke is an urban refugee, Nairobi hosts a total of 75,742 as of December 31.
The Refugee Affairs Secretariat in October conducted new registration of 1,281 urban refugees.
Of these, 25 per cent (324) arrived before 2019, 73 per cent (930) arrived in 2019 and 2 per cent (27) new-born (birth).
Registration was conducted in Nakuru (18), Mombasa (203) and Nairobi (1,060).
The Majority of the new arrivals originated from Burundi (182), Democratic Republic of the Congo - DRC (514), Eritrea (27), Ethiopia (125), Somalia (340), South-Sudan (47), and other nationalities (46)
Kenya has been generous in hosting refugees, but while it says it is integrating refugees into society.
Refugees continue to struggle to obtain the most basic authorisations that would enable them to become productive members of society.
WORK PERMIT
Akanke has lived and studied in Kenya for more than 20 years, yet now that he can finally become self-reliant, the system in the country frustrates him at every turn.
He holds a bachelor degree in international relations from Daystar University.
"After university, the reality of being a refugee hit Akanke like a ton of bricks. I believed my treasured refugee ID card was worth something.
Filled with creativity, spontaneity, problem-solving skills and a refugee ID, I was ready for the job market," he said.
Unfortunately, the efforts to get a job became a nightmare, employers asked for supporting work permit.
"I got discouraged. I heard discouraging stories from other refugees; one lost out on two job offers due to unexplained delays in the processing of their work permit.I, however, applied for one," he recounts.
My work permit application got lost between the Refugee Affairs Secretariat and the Immigration Department.
"After chasing it for more than two months, I was confused and frustrated and eventually gave up. Now as the months turn into a year, the lack of an income is biting hard," he said
He dreads applying afresh now that the requirements are so stringent because of the crackdown on “illegal” foreigners that started in September 2018.
"I suddenly feel so alienated. I must jump all manner of hurdles for everything – a work permit, employment, and financial services," Nyaluak Lam said.
Nyaluach,23, fled war from Sudan when she was an infant.
"I actually do not remember exactly when I came to Kenya. What I know is that I was not born here and I was months old when my family sought refuge in Kenya," she chuckled.
Nyaluach for two years has been looking for an internship after clearing her degree in Business Management from Moi University.
Hers is a problem of expensive work permit.
"Employers ask for a work permit for an internship opportunity. The permit itself is very expensive. We cannot afford. Sometimes I feel like my education was a waste. I am not self-reliant," she said.
In a community forum organised by the Refugee Consortium of Kenya (RCK) held early this year in Kawangware, Nairobi, Advocacy, Policy Development and Governance Programme Officer Andrew Maina said refugees require a work permit to engage in any profession, trade, employment or occupation.
“Failure to possess a work permit while working in Kenya as a refugee can attract a fine of Sh300,000 or a prison term not exceeding three years or both,” he said.
Genevieve Uwajeneza, 24, dreamt of being a high school teacher.
She fled from Rwanda to Kenya when she was one month.
She embarked in education till university where she graduated with a Bachelors in education from Kenyatta University.
"Most employers do not understand our alien cards, they quickly dismiss us," she said.
Genevieve said that sometimes a refugee could land a landed an internship that pays a daily subsistence allowance.
But they are forced to drop the opportunity for the terms they are given.
"They ask for a work permit and KRA pin. Which we do not have," she said.