Uganda has been a global leader in implementing an integrated approach to refugee management in which refugees enjoy essentially the same rights and access to jobs and services as locals. This approach has benefited both refugees and host communities: the former have land and (limited) livelihood opportunities, the latter benefit from improved services for all and the positive ...» more
Refugees/IDPs
Cash-Based Initiatives for Refugees in Jordan: Annotated Bibliography
The available literature tells us little about the effectiveness of targeting of cash-based initiatives (CBIs) for refugees in Jordan. However, it suggests there are positive impacts on food security for refugees, their ability to pay for rent and utilities and their psycho-social well-being, as well as some reduction in resort to negative coping strategies. The impact of CBIs ...» more
Cost-Effectiveness in Humanitarian Work: Integration of Displaced Persons into Host Community Services
With unprecedented numbers of displaced persons around the world, the humanitarian system is facing huge financial pressures. The international community provides support (about US$22 billion in 2015) mainly through humanitarian programs, but the World Bank describes the current model as critically flawed (WBG 2017, p. 12) because forcibly displaced persons have to ...» more
Refugees in Uganda: (in)stability, conflict, and resilience
This paper analyses the structural challenges, root causes and dynamics of conflict, (in)stability and resilience in Uganda, with a particular focus on their relation to recent refugee movements. The first section of the paper explores the national dynamics that shape conflict, (in)stability and resilience in Uganda. The second section analyses the refugee flows, policies, ...» more
Donor response to refugee tensions in Lebanon
This rapid review synthesises data from academic, policy and NGO sources on donor response to prevent and reduce tensions between Lebanese and refugees in refugee-hosting communities across Lebanon. The focus is on post 2011 and Syrian refugees as the complexity of social, cultural, and historical dynamics produce tensions that are unique to Syrians and Lebanese. The history of ...» more
Leveraging change to policies, laws and practices in refugee hosting countries
This rapid review synthesises data from academic, policy and NGO sources on influencing government polices on refugees, with a particular focus on Rohingya in Bangladesh. However, it must be noted that this is an under researched topic with only the work of Jacobsen (1996) focusing specifically on the subject. Additionally, there are very few successful cases in the literature ...» more
Wastewater Treatment Plants in rapid mass displacement situations
This rapid review report has identified the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) options used in emergency settings, with decentralised wastewater treatment systems (DEWATS) and mobile wastewater treatment units performing most effectively and with minimal costs. Examples are taken from refugee camps and internally displaced people (IDP) settlements due to the Iraq war, the ...» more
Rohingya refugee crisis: impact on Bangladeshi politics
The huge Rohingya refugee influx into Bangladesh is seen in the literature as likely to strengthen the position of the Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League party. However, there are concerns that it will lead to further authoritarianism in the country, as well as fuel extremist sentiment. The Bangladeshi public are generally supportive of the ...» more
Waste management in situations of rapid, mass displacement
Solid waste and faecal sludge management in situations of rapid mass displacement are important to public health and providing for a better environment. Despite this, both have been neglected in WASH programmes, which tend to have a focus on water. However increasing efforts are being made to find solutions to challenges in solid waste and faecal sludge management in difficult ...» more
Environmental Impact Assessments in refugee crises
Although much of the literature found by this rapid review emphasises the necessity of including environmental considerations into the planning of mass displacement camps, and the role of environmental impact assessments (EIAs), there is little publically available literature on the assessments carried out, and the quality of these. The literature specifically highlights the ...» more
Lessons from the coordination of refugee responses
The literature review found little evidence of successes in coordination of refugee responses involving multiple lead agencies. Rather, it identified some clear lessons to emerge from recent experience of refugee response coordination, in particular from the Syrian refugee crisis in Lebanon. While host governments are assigned primary responsibility for refugee responses in ...» more
Innovative WASH options in situations of severe overcrowding
A rapid review of the literature has found a selection of innovative WASH options available for situations of severe population overcrowding and limited spaces. Case study information was collated from African, Middle Eastern, South Asian and Caribbean countries. As requested, a number of experts were consulted for their opinion where there was a lack of project evaluations ...» more
Managing risks in securitisation of refugees
This rapid review synthesises data from academic, policy and NGO sources on the securitisation of refugees, with a particular focus on Rohingya in Bangladesh. Although not referred to as refugees in Bangladesh, this report refers to Rohingya fleeing Myanmar as refugees. There is limited research on managing the risk of securitisation of refugees, rather the focus tends to be on ...» more
Effectiveness of various refugee settlement approaches
This review of the effectiveness of different approaches to refugee settlement shows that the ‘traditional’ approach of setting up refugee camps is ineffective in many respects - particularly in terms of promoting self-reliance - and hence to be avoided. The recommendation in policy circles is now for alternatives to camps that provide economic opportunities to refugees, allow ...» more
Effectiveness of programmes supporting migrants in Africa
Despite a growing body of research on migration and development, the literature highlights the limited empirical evidence available on the effectiveness of migration programmes. The aid-spending departments of the UK government are in the process of identifying how UK aid contributes to tackling the “root causes of mass migration” and developing new, targeted programmes. A ...» more
Emergency humanitarian response to longer-term development in refugee crises
This report provides a rapid literature review of the evidence on emergency humanitarian response to longer-term development in refugee crises. While the scope of the report did not allow for complex judgements to be made about the quality of the body of evidence, or of the strength of individual pieces of evidence, an evidence table is provided in Annex A to enable the reader ...» more
Sustainable livelihoods for refugees in protracted crises
Much of the literature in this area acknowledges the widespread constraints to livelihoods development in refugee settings. These include a disabling policy environment, low levels of social capital, poverty, and weak baseline levels of training and skills. Measures to support self-sufficiency are often severely hampered by restricted freedom of movement, weak tailoring of ...» more
Refugees and encampment
This helpdesk report discusses the important question of shifting policy on refugees from encampment to other models. It particularly focuses on what contexts, and in response to what drivers and arguments, have host countries shifted from an encampment to a more relaxed refugee policy regime. Several examples of governments moving from encampment to other methods are included ...» more
Sustainable livelihoods in Ugandan refugee settings
Uganda has hosted refugees from neighbouring conflict-affect countries for several decades. Some research suggests that self-employed refugees are somewhat more successful than employed refugees, but there is little concrete evidence from Uganda that current refugee livelihood strategies are successfully fostering self-reliance and sustainable solutions. Most of the available ...» more
Effects of respect for international humanitarian law on displacement
Much of the literature agrees that violence against civilians is the primary driver of displacement. However, while a few causalities can be considered established, authors frequently note that findings are either correlations (rather than causalities), or that the causalities need clarification. High-quality literature on population movements has long demonstrated that, even ...» more
