Refugees in the Dajla camp are malnourished and dependent on aid

(20 Apr 2007) SHOTLIST
Dajla Refugee Camp, Algeria
1) Dajla Refugee Camp, Algeria
2) Refugee women dividing up food aid
3) Aid arrives in donkey and cart
4) Bag of azucar
5) Women dividing up aid
6) Livestock drinking water
7) UN built water container
8) Refugee drinking from camp's tap
9) Boy drinks from tap
10)Water system
11)Woman cleaning pots and pans
12)Woman puts on headscarf
13)Man walking on crutches
14)Doctor with patient
15) SOUNDBOTE (SPANISH) - Doctor Ibrahim Said Ibrahim
"What this hospital needs is special foods for feeding malnourished children. We have many children that are underfed due to a lack of nutrition."
16)Hospital beds
17)Consulting room
18)Doctor with patient
19)Vegetable garden
20)Drip irrigation
21)Woman weeding crops
22)Woman weeding
23) SOUNDBITE (SPANISH) - Watad, Farmer
"This is a project where the objective is to produce crops for the population. But it is also a chance for them to learn agriculture",
24)Tomato crop
25)Lettuce crops
26)Tent
27)Girl in camp
28)Baby playing
29)Solar panel
30)TV satellite dish
31)Mud huts
32)Interior mud hut
33)Mother with children cleaning house
34)Children
35)Boy gets out chalk board at school
36) Boy writes letters on chalk board
37) Mid - Boy shows letters to teacher
38)Teacher at chalkboard
39) SOUNDBITE (ARABIC), Laila, Headmistress of nursery
"We try to do our job as best we can although we are lacking things we work with what we have. We try as best we can because we are happy with what we are doing with the children. But we would like more assistance with material things which is what is most missing but we will continue on with or without help".
40) Maths class
41)Girl does sums
42) Boy in class
43)Nursery class
44)Children
45)girl
46)Woman cleaning camp
LEADIN
The Dajla refugee camp is in the far-western corner of Algeria.
It is home to some 50,000 Saharawis, who had to leave their territories in Western Sahara.
Their plight has now lasted 30 years
STORYLINE
It's been described by some here as one of the worst places in the world to live.
A scare and dirty supply of water, no crops, searing temperatures of 50 degrees in summer and frequent sand storms make this corner of the Sahara desert insufferable.
The Saharawis have been forced to make this land their home. They are dependent on food aid such as sugar which is flown in by the World Food Program.
Water is also flown in to the nearest airport and contained in huge containers. Dajla is thought to be the greenest of the 4 refugee camps that are used by the Saharawis. A small oasis and well are the camp's alternative source of water.
The Saharawis were forced to leave their territory south of Morocco in 1975 when a guerrilla campaign was started by the Saharawis' political movement - the Polisario.
Although the four refugee camps are meant to be temporary, certain buildings have a permanent feel.
The hospital is run by Doctor Ibrahim Said who was trained in Cuba. He has a long list of needs but highlights the problems facing poorly nourished children.
A small garden has been developed to produce vegetables for the refugees. Using a drip irrigation system to carefully use the most precious resource in the camp, water.
Watad runs the garden.
The Western Sahara was a Spanish administered colony since 1884. The Spaniards left in 1975 the same year the International Court of Justice recognized the Saharawis right to self determination.
But in November of 1975, under orders from Moroccan King Hassan II, over 300,000 Moroccans started to occupy the territory in a movement called the "Green March".

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