Refugees from Central African Republic reach safety in Cameroon
World Food Programme and UNHCR provide life-saving assistance to people who've trekked for days to escape violence
12 February 2021, By Hedley Tembeng Tah
Safe at last: CAR refugees are guided into the Gado-Badezere camp. Photo: UNHCR/Xavier Bourgois
The sheer vastness of the refugee camp at Gado-Badzere, 30 km from Cameroon’s eastern border with the
That’s where the refugees filing in on a rainy January morning hail from. Family heads lead the way as staff from the World Food Programme (WFP) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) take people’s names. The Government of Cameroon wants to ensure every registered refugee fleeing the violence in their homeland is accounted for. People who got here first welcome those just arriving. Everyone is hoping to spot a relative or a friend. Only occasionally does this happen, however.