Prison or Sanctuary?: An Evaluation of Camps for Syrian Refugees

Camps are a controversial strategy to manage an influx of refugees. Host countries want to minimize effects on natives, but relief organizations worry that isolation reduces employment and self-reliance over time. Using a novel survey, I study Syrians in Jordan and Iraq, comparing camp residents to other refugees who self-settle in the same country. I identify the effects of camp residence with multiple strategies: controlling for a rich set of observables and a difference-in-differences with Lebanon where camps were never opened. I find that, after an average of three years in displacement, camps do reduce household income; however, the gap is less than the rent saved by living in a camp, and employment growth is similar over time. Combined with additional refugee outcomes, expenditure data, and literature on the impacts on natives, I argue that camps can be an efficient subsidy to refugees willing to opt out of urban areas.