What are IDPs? What are IDP camps in Darfur like?
Watch a UNFPA segment on women IDPs. Read an ICRC publication on Internally Displaced People (2/2007) IDPs are internally displaced people. For many civilians whose homes have been destroyed, IDP camps provide the only available source of food, medicine, and relative safety. Some camps were built quickly by incoming civilians seeking refuge, while others have been constructed more systematically to handle overflows. In some camps, thatched housing or shelters made of plastic sheeting are the most common, while in some areas tenants have begun replacing their housing with bricks made from local clay. Food is provided on ration to each family once a month in camps that the World Food Program is able to reach, while the government of Sudan still blocks their access to many camps, especially in rebel held territory. The rations consist of local grains (millet, sorghum), salt, sugar, and oil. Because this is not a sustainable diet, civilians must trade parts of their rations or otherwise ac
