Refugee tells World Economic Forum of the plight of the displaced

Mohammed Hassan Mohamud, who has been a refugee in Kenya for two decades, gave an impassioned plea to the political and business elites gathered in the Swiss ski resort of Davos to do more than pay lip-service to the plight of millions of displaced people.

Mr Mohamud, who is one of the seven co-chairs at this year’s World Economic Forum, explained how 185,000 people from 10 different nationalities are confined in Kenya’s Kakuma camp with very little chance of getting out and making a life for themselves.

Refugee camps, he said, “are not ethical” and “not conducive to human growth”.

Mr Mohamud, 28, said he wants to use his position as a WEF co-chair to “demystify” the refugee experience.

“We’re not criminals,” he said. “It’s not a crime to flee your country … I don’t know what you’re all afraid of.”