Humanitarian

Women and children may risk their safety, health—and sometimes their lives—to search for and collect firewood so they can cook food over smoky, polluting open fires. In many cases, women walk for hours to find firewood and must carry heavy loads back to their camp, which puts them at risk for physical and sexual attacks, dehydration, and physical injuries. Children who collect firewood, or accompany their mothers in the collection, cannot attend school. Many displaced people sell or exchange a portion of their food rations to procure the firewood needed to cook the remaining food. Such coping mechanisms can have serious consequences, including malnutrition.

Moreover, in situations where firewood is the main source of fuel, such as in Sub-Saharan Africa, competition for dwindling natural resources is a trigger for tension between displaced people and host communities. The collection of firewood by refugees can cause deforestation and environmental degradation, which can be long-lasting and difficult to reverse. It also can lead to a ban on firewood collection, which prevents refugees from cooking their food and leads to devastating consequences for their nutrition.