Kenya's Confusing Holiday History Leaves South Sudanese Refugees Struggling with National Identity
Eldoret, 27 March 2026
South Sudanese refugees in Eldoret face bewilderment during Kenya’s October 10th celebrations, a holiday that has been renamed three times in recent years—from Moi Day to Huduma Day to Utamaduni Day. This confusion reflects deeper challenges for Kenya’s 24.7% South Sudanese refugee population, who struggle to connect with shifting national celebrations whilst navigating an already complex relationship with their host country. The holiday’s turbulent history mirrors the refugees’ own uncertain status in Kenya’s second-largest refugee-hosting nation in Africa.
A Holiday’s Journey Through Political Change
The October 10th holiday’s confusing evolution reflects Kenya’s broader political transformations over the past decade. Originally marking the day Daniel Torotich Arap Moi ascended to power, the date was known as Moi Day [2]. However, following amendments to the Kenyan constitution in 2010, dissatisfaction grew with the holiday due to its association with one-man party rule [2]. In 2017, Kenya’s Supreme Court advised renaming the holiday rather than removing it entirely, leading President Uhuru Kenyatta’s government to rebrand it as Huduma Day [2]. The changes didn’t end there—after nine years, the government initially selected 26th December as Utamaduni Day to highlight the Building Bridges Initiative, before ultimately reinstating 10th October as Utamaduni Day in 2020, replacing Huduma Day but without clear guidelines for celebration [2].
Eldoret’s Invisible Department and Service Delivery Challenges
For South Sudanese refugees in Eldoret, understanding Kenya’s shifting national celebrations becomes even more challenging when coupled with inadequate government services. Eldoret was chosen as the location for a Department of Refugee Services field office due to its central location near refugee entry points and its sizeable South Sudanese population [2]. However, the office has become known as ‘the invisible department’ due to its location in the last room of the last building in an unmarked immigration compound [2]. Refugees seeking assistance at the Eldoret office face stern-faced officers and bureaucratic obstacles that can stretch for years [2]. Refugee students applying for an Alien ID may experience up to five years of being sent back and forth with no clear explanations, often being instructed to travel to Nairobi to the Ministry of Interior to apply for session requests to be removed from and re-entered into the refugee system [2].
Kenya’s Role as a Regional Refugee Haven
Despite these administrative challenges, Kenya remains a crucial sanctuary for displaced populations across East Africa. The country stands as the second-biggest refugee-hosting nation in Africa after Ethiopia, with South Sudanese refugees comprising 24.7% of the total refugee population [2]. Somalia accounts for the largest share at 53.7% of refugees [2]. Eldoret alone hosts 2,746 refugees, whilst Nairobi, Mombasa, and Nakuru collectively accommodate 88,888 refugees [2]. The Department of Refugee Services, established under Section 8 of the Refugee Act 2021, was created to handle refugee matters more effectively [2], though implementation challenges persist in field offices like Eldoret.
Building Bridges Through Integrated Development
Amidst these challenges, innovative programmes offer hope for better integration between refugee and host communities. Kenya adopted the Global Compact on Refugees and Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework in 2018, implementing the Kalobeyei Integrated Social and Economic Development Programme (KISEDP) to promote self-reliance [1]. This multi-year programme, running from 2016 to 2030, is divided into four phases and eight components, aligned with the Turkana County Integrated Development Plan [1]. Turkana County Governor Jeremiah Lomorukai Napotikan emphasised that ‘KISEDP enhances the call for protection and safety of all humankind through promoting inclusive socio-economic development’ [1]. The programme has already completed Phase I (2018-2022) and is currently implementing Phase II, with Kalobeyei settlement featuring shared commercial and leisure areas, accommodation, gardens, and better-equipped schools compared to the four Kakuma camps [1]. As the Turkana governor noted, ‘This is an integrating program that we truly appreciate as the county government…The UNHCR and its partners have done their best and we will continue to implement some of the highlighted socio-economic programs for integration of refugees and host communities’ [1].