Interview with refugees in Manga

As part of our donation activity to refugees of Manga last January 31, I interviewed few of them to better understand their daily lives.

Achille: “Hello, how do you feel now”?

DPI 1: “We are very moved, we are very grateful to those who thought of us without knowing us, may God bless them. May God strengthen their work.

We are blessed having been able to flee Djibo to arrive here in Manga. But being a father, we are very concerned about feeding our children and wives “.

Achille: “What was your previous work before arriving in Manga?”

DPI 1: “We were farming. Some of us doing business”.

Achille: “And what is your current work “?

DPI 1: “Agriculture mainly”.

Achille: “What are your urgent needs or your plan for the short-term (2–3 months for instance)”?

DPI 1: “If we get help, we will restart farming, we will buy animals to breed. We are good at it. As for the youngest, they used to run small businesses, but now they have no work to do being here. “

Achille: “How are you accommodated here”?

DPI 1: “We live with the chief of the village who has given us some space to sleep. He has been feeding us and hosting us for 8 months now, we don’t have our own accommodation here. “

Achille: Do you have other relatives from the wider family who came with you here?

DPI 1: “I was the first to arrive here, I was warmly welcomed by the locals. Unfortunately, the situation back in Djibo has gradually become worse. So I had to inform my other parents that Manga was a more secure area to live. I had to beg locals hospitality again so that other people could join me. This is how we arrived in 3 groups of 70 people on average each. “

Achille: “What are you most afraid of”?

DPI 1: “My biggest fear is the terror that we have experienced in the past, nothing more, we are safe here”.

Achilles: “Do you plan to return to Djibo”?

DPI 1: “No. We no longer wish to return there. Besides, Djibo is not actually our native place, we were taken there by our parents long before. We are originally from Ouagadougou”.

Achille: “What is your last word to donors”?

DPI 1: “We are concerned about water provision. Before hosting us, the Chief was very clear with us regarding the water issue in the area. We need a well to supply population. If we get some water, we would be satisfied. “

Achille: “How many meals do you eat per day”?

DPI 1: “We used to get 3 meals a day in the past. But here we eat twice a day, in the morning and in the evening”.

Achille: “How many children do you have”?

DPI 1: “They are a lot.”

Achille: “How much on average per month do you need to feed yourself decently”?

DPI 1: “For a reasonable family, I would say that you need 30,000 FCFA (51 USD)”.

DPI 2: As for me, I have 31 people in charge, I must feed them without considering my brothers. So just imagine how much it could cost.

Achille: Don’t you have the support of other people like your grown children who studied or who could send you remittances?

DPI 2: No, none. They are still small and at school. And even for the children’s school this year we have had the support of the School Board because we have nothing. I told you that we fled leaving behind our businesses, cattle and other goods. Fortunately, we have not lost a family member. We were good in the past, we are workers.

Achille: Thank you for your time.

DPI 1 & DPI 2: Thank you, Thank you. May God bless you and strengthen your work. God bless you.

Abbreviation of DPI: Internal Displaced People or Refugee