Mobile Protection Truck Brings Vital Support to Refugees in Peru

A white-and-blue truck travelling across the rough roads of northern Peru is bringing legal guidance, documentation assistance and protection services directly to refugee families who cannot afford the journey to urban support centres. Operated by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, the mobile unit visits isolated settlements near Peru's borders with Ecuador and Chile, where poverty, insecurity and missing documents can leave displaced people cut off from health care, education and formal employment.

One recent mission took the team to El Canario, a small community in Tumbes province located between the Zarumilla River and the Pacific Ocean. Many of the families living in the settlement fled Venezuela and now occupy makeshift homes covered by weathered zinc roofs, often surviving through informal work while trying to rebuild their lives far from the public services available in larger towns.

A Truck Becomes a Safe Place for Support

After parking on a dusty football field, UNHCR staff transformed the vehicle and surrounding space into a temporary protection centre. An awning and two tents offered shade from the intense tropical sun, tables and chairs created consultation areas, and the truck's interior provided privacy for families discussing sensitive legal or protection concerns. Staff organized the visit with local authorities, Peru's Ombudsman's Office and UNHCR partner Encuentros, allowing residents to receive several forms of assistance close to their homes.

Twenty-four people, mostly women and children, received legal advice, practical information and help accessing documentation and protection services during the May visit. Óscar Pajuelo, Head of UNHCR's Field Unit in Tumbes, said such outreach is essential because many refugees live day to day and cannot reach established offices due to transport costs, safety concerns or a lack of official papers. Fuel represents the main operating expense, making the mobile approach an efficient way to deliver potentially life-changing support to communities that might otherwise remain invisible.

A Refugee Leader Helps Families Find Assistance

Rosaura López, a 42-year-old Venezuelan refugee, played a central role in connecting the El Canario community with the visiting team. She fled Venezuela with her two children in 2018 and has since become a widely known community leader in Aguas Verdes, helping other displaced families understand their rights, locate essential services and build new support networks in the border region.

Her community work began after she witnessed the insecurity affecting refugee women and children who had little organized support. Over the past five years, López has coordinated educational workshops, relief distributions and activities for pregnant women with assistance from UNHCR and partner organizations. When the mobile visit was announced, she shared the details throughout El Canario, so families knew when and where help would be available. For parents travelling with children and households unable to pay transport fares, receiving support within walking distance offered both financial relief and a greater sense of safety.

Thousands Reached Across Peru's Border Regions

Life remains uncertain for many people who have sought safety in northern Peru. UNHCR monitoring interviews in Tumbes found that 45 per cent of refugees believed they would face danger from widespread violence if returned to their countries, while 27 per cent reported specific threats to their lives. Most said they wanted to remain in Peru, where they hope to secure documentation, find stable work and give their children safer futures.

UNHCR conducts mobile outreach missions every month in Lima and along Peru's borders with Ecuador and Chile. More than 1,800 refugees and members of local host communities received assistance through 33 missions from the beginning of 2026. The mobile units complement six permanent protection centres operating in Lima and Tumbes province, where government institutions and humanitarian partners provide legal guidance, documentation help and referrals.

Peru hosts around 1.64 million Venezuelans forced to flee their country, making it the world's second-largest host nation for displaced Venezuelans. Refugees and asylum-seekers from Colombia and Cuba also live across the country. For families in remote communities, the arrival of a protection truck can mean finally knowing where to seek help, how to obtain vital papers and whom to contact when they feel unsafe.