Women, Work, and War (original) (raw)

Sustainable livelihoods in Ugandan refugee settings

Question What are the factors that help or inhibit sustainable livelihoods in refugee settings? – with a focus on Uganda Summary Uganda has hosted refugees from various neighbouring conflict-affect countries for several decades. Refugees in Uganda are either self-settled in urban and rural areas or live in organised settlements. 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 literature uncovered in this review is grey literature, published by both organisations working on supporting refugees and academics publishing the findings of their research in this area. Some of the factors supporting or inhibiting sustainable livelihoods in Ugandan refugee settings include: ◾The policy environment, particularly the right to work, labour rights, freedom of movement, and access to services. Uganda’s refugee assistance has development-orientated components aimed at supporting the self-reliance and resilience of entire communities. However, livelihood strategies need to be diverse, a focus on agricultural self-reliance alone is not enough. ◾Social capital and networks. Ethnic ties seem to play a particular role in Uganda, as does the ability of refugees to integrate into local communities. ◾Training and skills development can provide a foundation for self-reliance, but alone are insufficient. Lack of access to capital, markets and credit are also important. ◾Refugee profiles, as refugees of different ethnicities, ages, gender, ability, education, duration of stay, have varying levels of access to social networks, land and credit. For example, negative gender stereotypes and discriminatory attitudes towards refugees with disabilities can prevent women refugees and those with disabilities from finding work, or push them towards negative coping strategies. Refugee livelihood programming should have: localised contextual awareness; refugee and local input; partnerships with host institutions; and long-term and predictable funding.

Supporting sustainable livelihoods : a critical review of assistance in post-conflict situations

Monograph 102: Supporting Sustainable Livelihoods. A Critical Review of Assistance in Post-Conflict Situations, 2004

Extracted from text ... ABOUT THE AUTHORS Allan Cain is the Director of Development Workshop, an NGO based in Angola. Jenny Clover is a researcher at the Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria. Richard Cornwell Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria Rick de Satg? is a private consultant. Andrew Timpson is with the United Nations Development Programme. Coleen Vogel, Professor at the School of Archaeology, Geography and Environment Studies, University of the Witwatersrand. GLOSSARY AND ABBREVIATIONS ADRP Angola Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme DFID Department for International Development DRC Democratic Republic of Congo EPI Expanded Programme on Immunisation ERRA ..

Rethinking women in internal displacement situation

Most studies on internal displacement have shown that women (who are often enumerated together with their children) make up 70 percent of the total internally displaced population. What is common in the studies is the depiction of women's suffering due to forced displacement. Women are rendered one of the most vulnerable by situations of forced displacement. They have to bear the brunt of the changing situation as caretakers of young and old, as earning members of the family, as wives who have to put up with emotional and often physical backlash that the husbands unleash upon them due to frustration resulting from their economic and psychological inability to sustain the expected gender roles.

Livelihoods and protection in situations of protracted conflict

Disasters, 2010

This paper presents the findings from research on livelihoods-protection linkages from the perspective of conflict-affected populations as well as agency analysis and action. The aim of the research is to understand how greater complementarity between humanitarian protection and livelihoods approaches might reduce the risks facing conflict-affected populations. The findings show that the causes of risks to livelihoods and protection are often the same, and that community responses are intimately connected, providing good rationale for linking operational approaches. There are four main ways in which this can be done. First, by targeting those confronting the greatest risks. Second, by addressing the causes of risks through advocacy and capacity-building. Third, by implementing livelihoods interventions that minimise the need to adopt unsafe livelihood strategies and that address humanitarian consequences. Fourth, by making sure that livelihoods programming does not pose additional risks.

GENDER AND LIVELIHOODS

I n humanitarian crises, important windows of opportunity exist to support the early recovery of affected populations, creating the basis for self-sufficiency and future development interventions. By planning early recovery interventions as soon as possible during an emergency, you can avert the risk of relief assistance becoming an alternative to development and the social fabric of society can be more easily preserved and reconstituted. Providing early recovery support is also an important opportunity to promote gender equality and to build back better, in a way that capitalizes on the capacities of all sectors of society and reshapes social roles towards greater gender equality. Livelihoods support is one example of early recovery intervention in a humanitarian situations. Livelihood strategies aim at developing self-reliance. Livelihood interventions should be designed and implemented to strengthen women's and men's productive capacity early on, when it matters most, and to promote longer-term self-sufficiency.

Women and girls in forced and protracted displacement

Question What are the specific vulnerabilities women and girls face, and/or specific opportunities open to them, in forced and protracted displacement? Summary There is general consensus in this grey and academic literature on the vulnerabilities faced by women and girls in forced and protracted displacement, although less is known about the opportunities they may have and the long-term impacts. Much of the recent evidence available focuses on displaced populations in Europe and countries neighbouring Syria. There is more of a focus on refugees than internally displaced persons, although forcible displacement appears to result in similar vulnerabilities for both populations. Key findings of the review reveal women and girls face specific vulnerabilities during flight as a result of forced displacement, some of which include: ◾Increased risk of sexual and gender based violence: women and girls fleeing various different countries have been subject to sexual abuse, rape, transactional sex, and human trafficking by armed forces, officials, smugglers, others fleeing, and individuals in countries along the route. Women and girls travelling alone are particularly vulnerable. ◾Difficulties in providing support to populations in transit: efforts to provide essential services to women and girls in transit are complicated by language barriers and cultural factors, as well as lack of time and privacy to build trust with women, combined with limited numbers of trained personnel, and the rapid movement of populations. Lack of clear information hampers women and girls from accessing services and leaves them vulnerable to smugglers and other opportunists. ◾Lack of gender sensitive services: response plans have not specifically considered gender which has resulted in a lack of private and secure family-only and women-only accommodation, common areas and separate WASH facilities for women and men in reception centres. This increases the risk of sexual and gender based violence. ◾Pregnancy: displacement puts pregnant women at higher risk of complications, preterm delivery and even death; while access to contraception can be difficult for women in emergencies. Further, upon arrival in host country and during their protracted displacement women and girls face some similar and different vulnerabilities, some of which include: ◾Increased risk of sexual and gender based violence: in some host countries women and girls face daily sexual exploitation and harassment, which is often linked to economic vulnerability, the breakdown of traditional protection networks, the unsuitable conditions they live in, and objections to changing gender roles. Some of the violence has been perpetrated by humanitarian actors who are supposed to be assisting these vulnerable populations. ◾Increase in child marriage: displaced girls are often married off by families worried about their safety or for financial reasons, increasing their risk of exploitation and abuse and school dropout. ◾Increased risk of being trafficked: desperation and the need to seek out alternative means of protection and economic survival can push female refugees into the hands of traffickers. Many end up in several types of abusive situations, including prostitution, domestic slavery, child begging in urban areas, or working in dangerous labour conditions in textile factories and farms. ◾Increased trauma and isolation: many displaced women and girls are traumatised by their experiences, and the insecure situations many live in create added stress. Syrian refugee women and girls are often extremely isolated. ◾Restricted access to livelihoods: many displaced women struggle to establish livelihoods, and a harmful coping strategy may be ‘survival sex’. The insecure work environment increases the risk of sexual harassment for those displaced women who do work. ◾Lack of gender sensitive humanitarian assistance: the layout of camps for displaced persons may increase risks for women and girls. Inadequate assistance may result in women prioritising the needs of their husbands and children to the detriment of their own health and well-being. Non-food items may not meet the specific needs of women and girls and they may engage in transactional sex in order to raise the money needed to buy the appropriate items. ◾Inadequate support for menstrual hygiene management: without the provision of culturally appropriate sanitary items, women and girls may avoid attending school or engaging in livelihood activities. Some groups of forcibly displaced women are particularly vulnerable, including displaced adolescent girls; elderly women; disabled women and girls; female household heads; unaccompanied minors; sexual minorities; urban refugee women and girls; and internally displaced women and girls.