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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: KENYA REFUGEES LANGUAGE BARRIER
HEADLINE: College in Kenya Helps Refugees Learn Languages
TEASER: Some refugees living in Nairobi cannot speak English or Swahili, which makes integrating into society a struggle
PUBLISHED AT:
BYLINE: Hubbah Abdi
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE:
VIDEOGRAPHER: Jimmy Makhulo
VIDEO EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: KEnochs; Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original
PLATFORMS: WEB __ TV X RADIO X
TRT: 2:43
VID APPROVED BY: KE
TYPE: TV,R PKG
EDITOR NOTES: Radio tracks are included. For questions and final review, send it back to Africa Division’s senior editor, Salem Solomon, email: salemsolomon@voanews.com, Africa Division’s executive producer, Betty Ayoub, email: bayoub@voanews.com.
KE: couldn’t find any of the chyrons of the SOTs online.
))
((INTRO))
[[Many refugees living in Nairobi speak neither English nor Swahili, the two most common tongues in Kenya. This language barrier poses a challenge as they try to integrate into society. Hubbah Abdi has more from Nairobi, in this report narrated by Salem Solomon.]]
((NARRATOR))
Masajed Saifaldeen escaped from war and violence in Sudan. The Sudanese journalist was forced to seek refuge in Kenya.
((Masajed Saifaldeen, Sudanese Refugee)) (Female, in English))
“I came here from Ethiopia after the outbreak of war in my country. Seriously, I had a lot of problems before reaching here. My travel was very long, with the start from Al Kamlin [in Sudan] … to Ethiopia and after, then to here [Kenya].”
((NARRATOR))
Saifaldeen and many other refugees who live in Nairobi struggle to speak or write in English or Swahili. Saifaldeen has enrolled in English language courses at Maarifa College, a higher learning institute in the Kenyan capital that helps refugees and locals learn different languages.
((Masajed Saifaldeen, Sudanese Refugee)) ((Female, in English))
“It’s very difficult because everyone here is speaking Swahili and English, and as a broadcaster in Sudan, I was speaking only Arabic and not English. I’m here to learn English.”
((NARRATOR))
Tyaris Yunis, a Somali refugee, faces a similar problem. Now he must learn English and Swahili in a short period of time to survive in Nairobi.
((Tyaris Yunis, Somali Refugee)) ((Male, in English))
“When I came here, it was difficult from me to speak English, but I started to listen and write, and I feel I have improved."
((NARRATOR))
Mary Nyakoa, a teacher at Maarifa College, says the language barrier makes many of her students feel isolated and hopeless.
[[Radio track: Nyakoa says the center teaches students not only how to speak but also how they are supposed to conduct themselves as refugees. She says after three months, the center offers programs, and one teaches students their rights as refugees.]]
((Mary Nyakoa, English Teacher)) ((Female, in Swahili))
“We teach them how to speak but we also give them moral values, moral support so they understand when you are out there how are you supposed to conduct yourself as a refugee. One thing that we do here is after three months, we normally have different programs and one of them is to teach them their rights as refugees.”
((NARRATOR))
Providing inclusive education to refugees can be a challenging task. Obstacles include the availability of schools, classrooms and teachers in host communities. Salome Tera is the director of adult education in Nairobi County.
[[Radio track: Tera says as long as the refugees are in Kenya, they are supposed to get help. They should be given an education in English and Swahili so they can live and speak to people here. We should understand the problem they have.]]
((Salome Tera, Nairobi County Adult Education Director)) ((Female, in Swahili))
“...They should be given an education in English and Swahili so they can live and speak to people here. We should understand the problem they have.”
((NARRATOR))
The language barrier is just one of the challenges refugees face in Kenya.
((For Hubbah Abdi in Nairobi, Kenya, Salem Solomon, VOA News.))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateJuly 26, 2023 12:55 EDT
BylineHubbah Abdi
Brand / Language ServiceUS Agency for Global Media, Voice of America - English
