UNIQLO clothes refugees in Rwanda

RWANDA - Refugees will now live with more dignity, thanks to a significant donation from the Japanese clothing company UNIQLO, owned by Fast Retailing Co. Ltd, which announced a donation of several hundred thousand pieces of used UNIQLO clothing worth almost USD 1 million enabling the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to serve all refugees hosted in Rwanda.

A delegation of 17 representatives of UNIQLO visited Rwanda last week led by Mr. Yukihiro Nitta, Group Senior Vice President and Director of Corporate Social Responsibility for UNIQLO’s parent company, Fast Retailing Co., Ltd. And comprised of UNIQLO staff from Japan, Korea, France and China. The delegation participated in distribution of clothing to refugees in Gihembe and Mahama camps, and also held interviews with refugees to get their candid feedback on the quality of clothes and how the clothing will impact their lives. The events in Mahama and Gihembe refugee camps last week will be followed by further distributions which will benefit more than 152,223 refugees across Rwanda. Refugees spoke of their joy at receiving t-shirts, jumpers, trousers, coats and other used clothes donated by customers in UNIQLO stores in several countries.

Kagiraneza Safari, 37 years old, lives in Gihembe refugee camp. He is married, with 8 children. Living in a refugee camp, his family doesn’t earn an income andrely on assistance provided by UNHCR, WFP and other agencies. Carrying his bundle of clothes given by the UNIQLO team, he is delighted by the donation and is thankful to UNIQLO and UNHCR for the support.

“We do not receive clothes often in the camp and when we receive them, they are not always in good condition like those of UNIQLO. It’s difficult to afford enough clothes for my 8 children. When we do manage, it is only once a year and depends whether I get a loan from our savings group,” he said.

Adele Nyirabatanyurwa, a 68-year old single mother of 7 children doesn’t have any income generating activity. She relies on the monthly food and non-food support given to refugees in Gihembe camp by UNHCR and WFP to provide for their basic needs. She says that she is grateful to the clothes she received.

“This month, I will not have to spend a penny on clothes; I can use what I have to buy provisions for my family.” Adele said.

Safari and Adele are grateful for the humanitarian support they are receiving but still hope one day to be able to return to their country of origin.

“Do all the possible to bring back peace in our country of origin [Democratic Republic of
Congo] so we can leave behind our lives of refugees and be self-reliant back home,” said Safari.

"This contribution of clothing for refugees in Rwanda is another demonstration of the commitment of UNIQLO to helping refugees through its partnership with UNHCR globally, and we are grateful that UNIQLO’s action shows that not only Governments and humanitarian agencies can help, but also the corporate world," Martina Pomeroy, External Relations Officer for UNHCR, said in a statement.

In November 2015, Fast Retailing Co., Ltd., UNIQLO’s parent company, and UNHCR announced a new agreement of USD 10 million in funds to support refugees worldwide, starting in 2016. Commenting on announcement, Tadashi Yanai, Chairman, President and CEO of Fast Retailing Co., Ltd., said that refugee issues are among the most difficult challenges the international community is facing today.

“On behalf of Fast Retailing and UNIQLO, we are grateful for the strong cooperation with UNHCR in Rwanda which hosted our mission and facilitated our distribution of clothing to refugees. For many delegation members it was the first visit to a refugee camp, and the stories, images and experiences they will carry with them to their home countries will help us promote and expand UNIQLO’s programme to recycle clothing for the benefit of refugees in Rwanda, and around the world,” said Mr. Yukihiro Nitta, the Senior Vice President of Fast Retailing Group, while visiting Mahama refugee camp.

UNHCR Representative in Rwanda Saber Azam commended UNIQLO for its hands on approach, expressing appreciation that UNIQLO corporate staff and shop managers travelled to Rwanda to participate in the distribution of clothing to refugees in Gihembe and Mahama camps. ”Clothing is among the most basic items needed for daily life, particularly for refugees who depend on humanitarian assistance and don’t have means to buy their own clothing. Refugees who fled from Burundi last year often arrived in Rwanda with nothing but the clothing they were wearing, so this contribution could not be more timely or meaningful,” said Azam. “We are also hopeful that UNHCR’s partnership with private sector actors like UNIQLO will lead to improved self-reliance for refugees, so that one day they will be empowered to support themselves and their families.” ”

Through the innovative All-Product Recycling Initiative, UNIQLO has worked in partnership with UNHCR for close to a decade, donating clothing to refugees over 15 million clothing items to forcibly displaced men, women and children in more than 40 countries, as well as providing millions of dollars in financial contributions.

Rwanda is currently hosting over 152,000 refugees mainly from Burundi [77,255] and Democratic Republic of Congo [74,587] who are located in 6 camps, transit centers and in urban centers. UNHCR together with the Ministry for Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs coordinates the refugee response, which includes a range of UN and NGO partners. UNHCR has raised over USD 19.5 million so far in 2016 for its refugee and returnee protection interventions and provision of assistance such as shelter, sanitation and hygiene, education, access to water and energy, however this represents only a small part of the total needs which amount to over USD 101 million.

Written by:
Eugene Sibomana
UNHCR Kigali