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In the EHAGL Region, UNHCR and the WB have been collaborating to monitor the impact of COVID-19 on refugees using high-frequency phone surveys. Since May 2020, refugees have been included into the national socio-economic impact of COVID high frequency phone surveys led by the National Statistics Offices of the respective countries and the World Bank. These surveys will yield over 10,000 refugee households observations including two waves of data collection in Ethiopia (Sep-Oct), two waves in Kenya (May-Jun and Jul-Sep) and one wave in Uganda (Oct-Dec), one wave in Djibouti (Dec- Jan 21). The results from the Kenya high-frequency phone surveys show that COVID-related Job loss and unemployment have also affected Refugee households. Prior to COVID-19 outbreak in Kenya, there was a high level of unemployment among refugees. Due to the pandemic, the level of unemployment has significantly increased, with only about 8% of urban refugees and 23% of camp-based refugees reported having a job versus 53% for nationals. As the result, Refugee households are resorting to negative coping strategies. About 17% of urban refugees reported selling assets to generate income.
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22 Jan 2021 |
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Local Economic Development Strategy Launch – Moyo and Obongi Districts
On 20 November, with support of their local economic development partners, UNHCR and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the Moyo district and Obongi district are launching their Local Economic Development (LED) Strategy. Both these districts have had mass influxes of refugees over the last few years, with over 123,000 registered refugees in Palorinya settlement, Obongi. They have formulated their five year development plans under the Comprehensive National Development Framework with a vision to have a transformed population that is productive and prosperous by 2040. The main pillars of the LED strategy are enabling infrastructure, supporting local private sector development, upgrading human capital, attracting investment and changing attitudes towards local economic development. The inclusion of refugees in the district development plans marks a watershed in the humanitarian-development nexus, and provides stakeholders with a structure to transition towards resilience building interventions. Please find more information in the uploaded LED brochure and for further details contact Teresa Ongaro (Head of Field Office, Moyo, Uganda)
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13 Nov 2020 |
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IKEA Foundation contributes $3.5 million to support FAO's work with refugees and host communities in eastern Africa:
FAO, in collaboration with UNHCR proposes to strengthen partnerships between the public and private sectors to address the development challenges faced by refugee hosting countries, and promote sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development. The project is funded by the IKEA Foundation who will provide $3,500,000 over a period of 4 years. After exploring innovative joint approaches for the delivery of CRRF in Africa, a collaboration was established with selected private sector entities for the development of value chains that can provide a lucrative, yet fairly risk-free market engagement of vulnerable populations in displacement setting, while also contributing to socio-economic integration of refugees. Targeting Kenya and Uganda, the partners in this project include private sector partnership (INSTA and KadAfrica), the Office of the Prime Minister, Ministries of Agriculture, UNHCR, WFP, ICRISAT and Egerton University.
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17 Sep 2020 |