Dec 5, 2017
From refugee camp to Atlanta police force
How WFP helped feed the dreams of one of the ‘Lost Boys of Sudan’
Atlanta’s streets may not be paved with gold, but they seem like heaven to Jacob Deng Mach who went through dozens of nearly impossible challenges in fleeing to the safety of Ethiopia from his country Sudan, which was engulfed in war.
Thousands of boys like Jacob made that perilous journey in the 1980s, hiking hundreds of miles barefoot. Many children died from animal attacks, disease or got caught in the ensuing conflict between rebel troops and government soldiers. Later Jacob and these boys would be called ‘The Lost Boys of Sudan’.
“Had it not been for WFP and other UN programmes, my friends, fellow refugees and I would not have lived,” said Jacob.
Once in Ethiopia, the shirt he had on his back was in tatters. He had no knowledge of any local language. He was truly lost and on his own. But he survived and then made his way to Kakuma refugee camp in Northern Kenya.
The camp opened in 1991 originally to house the thousands of unaccompanied minors like Jacob. It was a safe haven for them and continues to be for over 184,000 people, mostly from South Sudan. Continued conflict in neighbouring countries has resulted in more people seeking refuge in the country with 2,000 refugees every month arriving at Kakuma refugee camps.
Determined to succeed
“I was 14 when I received porridge at school from WFP in Kakuma,” said Jacob. “The food was a helpful boost to my studies and was a motivating factor in going to school.”
Along with about 4,000 other Sudanese refugees, the United States resettled Jacob. He began his new life working low-paying jobs and finally obtaining a bachelor’s degree. He won a prestigious spot at Atlanta’s police academy but success in passing the very difficult driving test, which is necessary for every officer, evaded him. After five tries, on what would have been his final available attempt, he passed. This year Jacob became the department’s oldest recruit. But possibly the proudest.
At the recruits’ graduation ceremony earlier this year, Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields expressed her joy at seeing Jacob become an officer. She described him as the embodiment of what every officer should be.
Chief Shields centred much of her speech around Jacob, describing his ordeal in the bush and his journey to safety. She described his arrival in the United States with just one change of clothes and only a three-month guarantee of support from the government.
“Thank you,” she said to him. “For never giving up on yourself, your family or your native Sudan. But more than anything, thank you for allowing the Atlanta Police Department the opportunity to claim you as their son.”
Jacob maintains that he is the first ‘Lost Boy’ to ever wear the uniform of an American police officer. He says it is his mission to serve his community and keep the peace.
Feeding the future
WFP continues providing a mid-morning snack — porridge or bread rolls — to almost 83,000 children in 21 schools in Kakuma. Most of the children are from the refugee community.
On top of keeping thousands of children in school and out of harm’s way, the school porridge gives children much-needed nutrients for growth and development. WFP is now working with local groups of millers made up of refugees and host population to mill grain and supply flour with added nutrients to the schools. The groups buy grain (maize and sorghum) from local farmers, thereby contributing to the economy and in turn earning a living from supplying WFP as well as other institutions in the county with fortified flour.
“I profoundly appreciate the generous work WFP did and continue doing on a daily basis for refugees all over the world and I will never forget you,” Jacob said. “Keep doing what you are doing to help people. Like me, they will never forget you.”
Article by Katherine Arms
