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“We don’t have the necessary facilities for better hygiene

Published on Tuesday 24 November 2015

Shawng Mai, 38 years old, lives with seven other members of her family in the Robert Church camp at Bhamo. Like her, almost 2,500 people joined the camp following the resumption of the conflict between the Burmese army and the Kachin Independent Army (KIA) in June 2011.

“We were one of the poorest families in our village, Mung Din Pa. I gave birth a few days before fleeing from the fighting. We had to leave everything behind. I have lived in this camp for over a year with my blind mother-in-law, my husband who has a broken leg and our five children. We don’t have the knowledge and necessary facilities for better hygiene and good health.”

Liemkahm Xayakeo (Noi), Field Coordinator for Kachin State: “SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL has been supporting internally displaced persons in Kachin State since January 2012, in both government zones and those controlled by the Kachin Independance Army. We distribute ‘hygiene kits’ (soap, tooth brushes, tampons, etc.) along with hygiene awareness sessions to improve sanitation conditions in the camps.

  • 54.4 million inhabitants
  • 149th out of 191 countries on the Human Development Index
  • 178.000 people helped