Milaya

In August 2017 the one millionth refugee from South Sudan entered Uganda in escape of the war. 

With most of the refugees being women and children and leaving during shootings at night their bedsheets called Milaya are often one of the few things they carry. The handmade patterns have been made in South Sudan and Sudan for generations and the tradition of the Milayas continues in what has become their temporary home while waiting for the war to end. Bidibidi is with its more than 270 000 people considered one of the worlds largest refugee settlements.

Full story in National Geographic

After the story was published we founded The Milaya Project, a non-profit connecting South Sudanese refugees with customers who want to support the traditional art form. All profits go to helping the women’s collectives scale-up their businesses in Bidibidi.