Refugee livelihoods in Kampala, Nakivale and Kyangwali refugee settlements: patterns of engagement with the private sector (original) (raw)

The Refugee Studies Centre (RSC) Working Paper Series is intended to aid the rapid distribution of work in progress, research findings and special lectures by researchers and associates of the RSC. Papers aim to stimulate discussion among the worldwide community of scholars, policymakers and practitioners. They are distributed free of charge in PDF format via the RSC website. Bound hard copies of the working papers may also be purchased from the Centre. The opinions expressed in the papers are solely those of the author/s who retain the copyright. They should not be attributed to the project funders or the Refugee Studies Centre, the Oxford Department of International Development or the University of Oxford. Comments on individual Working Papers are welcomed, and should be directed to the author/s. Further details may be found at the RSC website (www.rsc.ox.ac.uk). 1 RSC WORKING PAPER SERIES NO. 95 Case study country: Uganda Our primary case study country is Uganda. Unlike many of its neighbours, which encamp refugees, the Ugandan government promotes the 'self-reliance' of refugees; this means that rather than limiting responses to refugees to humanitarian relief, a space is open for a development-based approach to refugee assistance (Betts 2012). We conducted a one-month pilot research study of the livelihoods of refugees in Kampala, the Ugandan capital, between July and August 2012 (see Omata 2012). In order to provide a comparative perspective to our initial Kampala-based findings, our research sites have been expanded to both Nakivale and Kyangwali refugee settlements. The ongoing comparative case studies of three research sites allow us to explore a range of variables (i.e. urban/rural, settlement/non-settlement, regulatory frameworks and nationality) to explain variation in the nature and depth of refugees' engagement with the private sector, innovation and technology. The duration of the whole project is initially two years, until August 2014, with the majority of fieldwork in Uganda expected to take place between March and November 2013. 1 The authors are indebted, in particular, to UNHCR and the Office of the Prime Minister in Kampala, Nakivale and Kyangwali settlements; Settlement Commanders and their support teams; Implementing and Operating Partners of UNHCR; Refugee Welfare Council; and individual refugees who actively participated in our research in the three sites. We are also grateful to both our Ugandan and refugee researchers who contributed to this paper.