Refugee Self-Reliance: Moving Beyond the Marketplace

Current discussions on refugee self-reliance do not generally address important questions such as: Why might non-economic aspects of refugee self-reliance be important? How do refugees themselves define self-reliance and what sort of support do they determine as most important in fostering it? How do humanitarian organisations know if refugees are actually self-reliant? The scale of displacement today and the ongoing nature of protracted refugee situations make these and other questions critical for the future of refugee assistance. The following sections of this brief address questions that are important for policymakers, practitioners, and academics to further discuss as the search for durable solutions for refugees continues.