By: Rachel Ryu, Policy Analyst, and Adson Mphepo, Rights Activist on Unaccompanied and Separated Child Refugees
Dzaleka Refugee Camp is Malawi’s largest refugee camp. Established in 1994, the camp was built on the site of a former prison to accommodate up to 12,000 refugees. At the end of 2025, it housed over 60,000 refugees, mostly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, and Burundi. The Republic of Malawi requires all refugees to reside in designated refugee camps, and Dzaleka is home to refugees who have suffered protracted displacement, as well as newly arriving refugees. Women and children make up 93 percent of the population. Despite the large child population, there is no dedicated child protection officer on site at Dzaleka or at Karonga Reception Center.
In 2019, a local law student, Adson Mphepo, went to Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Malawi to find and assess the needs of unaccompanied and separated refugee children (UASC). He met and spoke with three young girls who had fled from their village in the DRC due to armed conflict. While fleeing, they were separated from their parents and kin. On the journey, they found another group of refugees, and they followed them to Karonga, Malawi’s refugee reception center near the border with Tanzania. After registration, the girls had to find their own way to Dzaleka Refugee Camp, which is over 500 km (approx. 310 miles) away. It takes 10 hours to drive or over five days straight to walk. The three girls became separated from the group, but an older refugee girl led them to Dzaleka. When they arrived, the older girl disappeared. By chance, a refugee woman saw the three children and realized that they were alone. She took them in to live with her and her own children. These informal foster arrangements are common in Dzaleka.
In any discussion about refugee children, it is imperative for advocates and local actors to assess and prioritize the “best interests of the child.” Each child has a right to have their best interests centered in every decision made concerning them. Each decision should include an evaluation of a child’s best interest, and these interests should be frequently reevaluated as a child grows and as their environment changes. Children in displacement are at risk of different protection gaps and dangers as they develop, and conditions in refugee camps can drastically alter due to climate shocks and aid cuts. All of those factors impact the best interests of each child.
A displaced child’s best interest should be evaluated as early as possible upon arrival. Currently, Malawi’s Department for Refugees conducts registration of all refugees.* Unaccompanied children are referred to the Red Cross, who is a UNHCR implementing partner in Dzaleka. In December 2025, the Red Cross shared that they had 67 registered UASC. It is not clear if all UASC have been identified, as there is not enough information on the identification and registration process. The Red Cross mainly uses this information to conduct family tracing. In this context, tracing is difficult because families have been split up in chaos, and the Red Cross can only cross-reference lists of other refugee camps in the region. Reunification is near impossible if a child’s parents did not reach a refugee camp, if there were mistakes in registration, or they moved to another refugee camp.
UASC may be placed into the care of foster families. At Dzaleka Refugee Camp, placement commonly occurs through informal, traditional protection mechanisms without rigorous assessment of the caregiver’s suitability. The lack of screening procedures can lead to placements that jeopardize the child’s safety and well-being. Although a Malawian childcare law provides a regulatory framework for foster care placement, these provisions are not adhered to in practice in Dzaleka due to the lack of staffing and resources to implement them.
Foster families receive no extra financial or psychosocial support. They register each foster child as part of their household, so that the World Food Programme (WFP) knows to provide the household with food allowance. The WFP currently provides cash assistance to refugees on a monthly basis. Over the years, assistance has been cut, but food prices keep rising. Households struggle to buy enough food and basic needs for half of the month.
Malawi itself is facing a chronic food security crisis due to climate-related shocks. A 2023 analysis shows that 15 percent of the country’s population is experiencing high levels of food insecurity. Dzaleka Refugee Camp is located in a region that is under “stressed” food insecurity. While resilient, the country struggles with weak economic growth, stagnant trade, and currency depreciation. Aid and assistance through the help of UN-affiliated and non-governmental actors are necessary to sustain support and services for refugees.
On February 23, 2026, WFP announced that it would have to stop food assistance for over 60,000 refugees in Dzaleka by June 2026 if it cannot raise funds. These cuts are forcing refugees to make impossible decisions just to survive. The Deputy Prime Minister of Luxembourg said that food shortages will increase the “risk of people [going] into prostitution just to get food.” Cuts to assistance and food rations can also lead to refugee families refusing to foster unaccompanied children. In other refugee contexts, caregivers reported both food insecurity and meeting basic needs as persistent challenges. Emotional and psychosocial strain and feelings of isolation in caregiving were also reported.
After conducting several visits and producing research on this topic, the need is clear: Dzaleka Refugee Camp must have a permanent child protection officer. Further support is critical to ensure that foster families are assessed for suitability, and placements must be monitored.
NGO actors have consistently raised the need for dedicated child welfare workers in refugee camps to address protection gaps. Without formalized care systems, these children do not have their future protected. At minimum, UASC in foster families should be routinely visited by child protection workers to ensure they are safe and receiving adequate care, protection, and access to essential services such as education, healthcare, and psychosocial support. Monitoring UASC placements is not only good for the child’s safety, but it also ensures that NGO actors are continually evaluating the child’s best interest and inviting child participation in decisions about their lives and future. Being left out of the process and without information also contributes to a child’s stress in an already fragile environment.
Foster caregivers are volunteering to take on the responsibilities of feeding, housing, and looking after the development of UASC. Many arrangements are caring and supportive for children. While these arrangements are often informal and can present significant challenges, the dangers can be comprehensively mitigated by the State, child protection experts, and refugee camp administrators who implement and enforce policy. For instance, the woman introduced at the beginning of this blog is living with her foster children and her own two children in a small, dilapidated structure that leaks in bad weather. None of the children are able to attend school. Collaboration among stakeholders to address the critical needs of UASC in migration and displacement settings is of the utmost importance. To ensure child protection, foster care systems need to be supported. This includes designated, sustainable funding to support foster families and child protection initiatives.
The Constitution and laws of Malawi state that the rights of children and their wellbeing should be protected by the State. For UASC, however, the lack of formal procedures for identification, care placements, and evaluation are resulting in protection gaps. Under this system, NGOs are forced to improvise and create systems that are vulnerable to aid cuts and shifting priorities. The international community must advocate for a stronger system to protect children’s futures. Policy change at the local level must go hand-in-hand with international support. Otherwise, children may be handed an empty promise of protection and inclusivity.
*UNHCR used to conduct registration and administer programs for refugees. Due to international aid cuts, UNHCR is no longer in charge of registration and has significantly cut back presence in Dzaleka as of the time of writing.
