Forced Migration in the OIC Member Countries:
Policy Framework Adopted by Host Countries
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permanent legal status or collateral for their loan.76 Thus, refugees must often rely on loan
programs operated by NGOs or lending initiatives within their own communities to access
sources of capital.77 Refugees can also struggle to find childcare, and encounter discrimination
and language barriers when seeking employment.78 Refugee women also face gender-based
violence and harassment when working—for example, numerous Congolese refugee women
who sold fabric (kitenge) on the streets reported being victims of sexual assault.79
Social networks appear to play an important role in both finding work, and providing refugees
with a safety net. In Kampala, many Somali refugees live in Kisenyi, where wealthier Somalis
and mosques help needy members of their community with access to jobs and financial
support; but the Congolese and Burundian communities are more dispersed across Kampala,
with correspondingly weaker support networks.80
Livelihoods training
Promoting sustainable livelihoods for refugees and host communities forms an important
component of Uganda’s National Development Plan, with international organizations, donor
agencies, and NGOs all offering different livelihood training opportunities. In rural areas, these
often focus on agronomic practice and related business and marketing skills to boost the
productivity of refugee agriculture. One example is UNHCR and WFP’s pilot project in
Rwamwanja and Kwangwali settlements, which began in October 2015, with the goal of
boosting agricultural production and refugee income. This will provide 17,500 refugees and
Ugandans with modern technologies, community infrastructure, land to use, and agricultural
and business skills training.81 Another example is a project between UNHCR, the Japan
International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and various national government agencies operating
in three refugee settlements (2011-16), which trains South Sudanese and Congolese refugees
and local communities to cultivate rice, a cash crop in Uganda, and provides them with
seeds.82
In urban areas like Kampala, international organizations (such as the Jesuit Refugee Service),
donor agencies (such as the Finnish Refugee Service) and refugee-run organizations offer
livelihoods trainings; these tend to focus on basic computer and business skills, financial
literacy, and crafts and occupations like hairdressing.83 A recent study flagged the importance
of conducting market assessments to ensure that there are sufficient employment
opportunities in these fields; while earlier work suggests that most refugees use the skills they
acquire during these trainings when establishing businesses, three quarters of the refugees
surveyed in the study described a lack of employment opportunities after these trainings.84
76 Ibid, 23-24.
77 Ibid, 23-25.
78 WRC, The Living Ain’t Easy, 9.
79 Ibid, 17.
80 Ibid, 11; Buscher, 21-22.
81 World Food Programme, “Thousands Of Refugees And Host Community Farmers Set To Benefit As OPM, UNHCR And WFP
Sign Landmark Self-Reliance Agreement,” News release, August 12, 2015,
82 Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry, and Fisheries (MAAIF); National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO);
National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS). NAADS, “Promotion of Rice Development – PRIDE,” accessed June 10,
2016, and Japan International
Cooperation Agency (JICA), “JICA and UNHCR Teach Refugees and Their Ugandan Hosts How to Grow Rice,” News release,
December 18, 2014
83 Easton-Calabria, The Role of Livelihoods Trainings for Kampala’s Urban Refugees.
84 Ibid, 17.