Drew's African Odyssey - Mwange Refugee Camp, Zambia

Late last night, I found out that all the NGO heads from the two refugee camps were required to attend a security briefing in Kawambwa. I didn’t know what to think when I heard this. Was there some kind of security threat in the camp? Were the refugees rioting or protesting about something? It turns that the training was only to review UN procedures for emergency security situations. The man who came to give the briefing showed us a film that portrayed different security situations that could potentially arise and how to deal with them. It turns out that the same man was the one who played a leading role in the film, so I was joking with some other guys that this was the only reason the briefing had been given (probably true). While in Kawambwa, I got a chance to visit with Erin, who is on the RTP team at the Kawambwa camp. She only has two weeks left in her contract, so she’s getting really excited to return home. I also had a chance to meet the new UNHCR head for the area. He is from Sierra Leone and speaks both Swahili and French, not to mention his two doctorates and two masters degrees. This man should be infinitely better suited for the job then the last man, who was a former officer in the Sudanese military and barely spent any time in the camps…