Around the world, the number of people displaced from their homes continues to increase due to political conflict and climate change. The Ugandan government’s policy for settling refugees shifts the focus from seeing refugees as humanitarian obligations to recognizing that refugee settlements bring improved services and infrastructure that can serve both refugees and residents of the host communities. A key aspect of this policy is to provide refugees with land use rights, so they are able to achieve “self-reliance”. This research investigates (1) the role of planning in establishing the physical layout of Bidi Bidi, Uganda’s largest integrated settlement, (2) the host community’s rationale for allowing refugees access to their land, and (3) how refugees used this land. Based on interviews, participant observation, GIS analysis, and document analysis, we learned how refugees altered the settlement’s layout to better meet their needs, the unintended consequences of large- scale deforestation on the most vulnerable, and the limitations of the land-based approach to achieve self-reliance. These findings suggest expanding the avenues to achieve self-reliance, improving “integration” of service provision between refugees and residents of the host community, and protecting the area’s environment to maintain needed resources.
Publishing Organizations: Na'amal, Jobtech Alliance
Author(s): Dr Shuting Xia, Lorraine Charles
Publishing Organizations: ODI Global
Author(s): Caitlin Sturridge, Amanda Gray Meral, Kerrie Holloway, Simon Levine
Publishing Organizations: The Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies (JEMS)
Author(s): R.A. Rizka Fiani Prabaningtyas, Tri Nuke Pudjiastuti, Antje Missbach, Faudzan Farhana, Athiqah Nur Alami
Publishing Organizations: SSM - Mental Health
Author(s): Dr. Ilana Seff, Arturo Harker Roa, Raymond Atwebembere, Jennie Cottle, Ned Meerdink, Adriana Monar, Diany Castellar, Dr. Lindsay Stark
Publishing Organizations: Refugee Self-Reliance Initiative
Author(s): Dr. Ilana Seff, Dr. Lindsay Stark, Kari Diener, Kellie Leeson, Ned Meerdink, Alli Gillespie
Publishing Organizations: The World Bank
Author(s): Jan von der Goltz, Kirsten Schuettler, Julie Bousquet, Tewodros Aragie Kebede
Publishing Organizations: Norwegian Refugee Council
Publishing Organizations: Refugee Self-Reliance Initiative
Author(s): Climate Risks and Self-Reliance Technical Working Group (TWG)
Publishing Organizations: Jobtech Alliance, Na'amal, Hilton Foundation
Publishing Organizations: International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
Author(s): Boel McAteer and Kellie Leeson