Refugee & IDP Women – Fuel Alternatives & Greater Safety
Author: Womens UN Report Network
Date: March 12, 2006
CHILDREN
references.
Beyond Firewood: Fuel Alternatives and Protection Strategies for Displaced
Women and Girls
Displaced women demonstrating fuel-efficient mud stoves in North Darfur |
The environment that surrounds refugee or internally displaced persons (IDP)
camps, particularly in situations of ongoing conflict, is notoriously dangerous.
Yet every day, in hundreds of camps around the world, millions of women and
girls venture out into this danger, risking rape, assault, abduction, theft,
exploitation or even murder, in order to collect enough firewood to cook with or
to sell in order to survive. Rarely is cooking fuel provided by the humanitarian
community, and even more rarely do men collect the wood. The risks associated
with firewood collection have been well known for years, yet few effective
strategies are in place to combat the problem.
The Women’s Commission is advocating for solutions that reduce displaced
women and girls’ vulnerability to gender-based violence (GBV) as they collect
firewood. P hysical protection strategies can actively prevent attack during
the collection of firewood. The development of alternative sources of
cooking fuel , on the other hand, can help to lessen the potential for
attack.
In the report, Beyond Firewood: Fuel Alternatives and Protection
Strategies for Displaced Women and Girls, the Women’s Commission outlines
alternative fuel options, firewood collection techniques and other protection
strategies that should be used in displaced and refugee situations worldwide.
To be effective, however, all strategies aimed at reducing the threat to
women and girls should be accompanied by the development of income-generation
activities. Women and girls must be able to earn a living in ways other than
collecting or selling firewood.
Learn More:
Read the full report, Beyond
Firewood: Fuel Alternatives and Protection Strategies for Displaced Women and
Girls and/or the companion publications:
- Synopsis of the report
-
Press
release -
Case study on Darfur: Finding Trees in the Desert: Firewood
Collection and Alternatives in Darfur -
Case study about Nepal: The Perils of Direct Provision:
UNHCR’s Response to the Fuel Needs of Bhutanese Refugees in Nepal - UNFPA
Executive Director Thoraya Obaid’s press conference speech
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