A radio campaign aimed at better informing migrants and
asylum-seekers of the dangers they face when travelling through
Somalia en route to the Gulf of Aden and beyond is being launched
tomorrow, 19 September on the BBC World Service.

The campaign in Somali by IOM, in partnership with the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), will target both migrants as
well as host communities in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and
Yemen.

As well as aiming to foster better knowledge among would-be
migrants before making their decision to go abroad, the campaign
also targets host communities in a bid to improve their reception
and protection of the migrants. According to the Somali traditional
law, xeer, when people seek refuge, a "host" clan must protect
them. In many cases during Somalia's recent history, this has not
been possible simply because of the extremely dire situation faced
by the host communities themselves.

Funded by IOM and its partners, the campaign will comprise
various components, including migrant testimonies, discussions and
drama. The radio campaign is part of a broader Somali lifeline
programme funded by various UN agencies including the UN Children's
Fund (UNICEF), UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and the UN's Office at
Nairobi (UNON).

Every year, tens of thousands of migrants and asylum-seekers
make the hazardous journey from mainly the Ogaden region of
Ethiopia and South Central Somalia through the North East region of
Somalia, Puntland, and onwards across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen in
makeshift boats operated by unscrupulous smugglers.

Of nearly 43,500 migrants and asylum-seekers who have crossed
the Gulf of Aden from Somalia this year, close to 280 people have
so far drowned or are missing at sea, presumed dead. In the latest
incident earlier this week, 65 people were reported to be dead or
missing in the Gulf of Aden 

The campaign, produced by the BBC World Service Trust, the only
organization that produces behavioural change communication
programmes that can be broadcast regionally, not only reaches
listeners in Somalia but also links the Somali diaspora in other
parts of the world. The campaign will run on the BBC's Somali
Service until end of January 2010.

For more information, please contact: 

Elena Giannini

IOM Regional Office, Kenya

Tel: 254 737861378

Email: "mailto:egiannini@iom.int">egiannini@iom.int