Strengthening evidence for refugee self-reliance programming 

For refugees, achieving self-reliance—being able to meet their essential needs without being fully dependent on aid—is a crucial milestone toward building stable lives in their host countries. This goal is increasingly critical as the number of forcibly displaced people globally continues to increase at record levels. In recent years, fewer than 3% of refugees each year have found lasting solutions by returning to their home countries, securing legal status in their host countries, or resettling elsewhere. Instead, many refugees face prolonged stays in host countries, sometimes lasting decades, where they must depend on cycles of short-term aid and face restrictions on their ability to work, move freely, own property, or access public services.  

Refugee self-reliance programs address these challenges by providing comprehensive solutions to facilitate independence and long-term stability. These programs provide access to job training and employment opportunities, fostering economic inclusion; community integration opportunities; access to public services; and support for obtaining legal documents that will allow them to work, open bank accounts, travel, and receive services.  

Refugees’ voices are underrepresented in the data 

What types of programs are most effective in helping refugees achieve and sustain self-reliance? Unfortunately, there are gaps in the collected evidence, which has led to missed opportunities for shaping effective policies and practices. So, RefugePoint, a nonprofit working to expand access to lasting solutions, and the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), Denmark’s largest international non-governmental organization,  reviewed the state of the evidence on refugee self-reliance and make recommendations to address these gaps. 

We found that existing evidence on how to support refugee self-reliance is based on a narrow range of perspectives and contexts. Ninety percent of the more than 160 case studies, policy briefs, project evaluations, and impact evaluations reviewed came from just 15 organizations, primarily based in Europe and North America. Less than 25% of those resources captured the voices and perspectives of the refugees themselves beyond basic survey data. This has resulted in a lack of insight into refugees’ own views on what self-reliance means and how it should be assessed.  

Most of the available research focused on host countries in East Africa and the Middle East, leaving other regions notably underrepresented. Moreover, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to self-reliance programming, yet there’s scant research segmented by context and population. This makes it challenging to identify and adapt effective program models to similar contexts or to populations with specific needs. 

Refugee-led research provides actionable insights on refugee self-reliance 

We’ve identified critical gaps in understanding what strategies effectively promote self-reliance. This research highlights not only the limitations of the current evidence but also the areas where more research is needed to inform better practices and policies. Several initiatives are already working to address these gaps. 

For example, the Refugee Self-Reliance Initiative (RSRI)—a network of more than 250 NGOs, refugee-led and community-based organizations, host and donor governments, funders, academics, think tanks, United Nations agencies, and other multilateral institutions—explored how self-reliance programming can better account for climate risks and hazards, a gap identified in our evidence review. Initial research has confirmed that climate change significantly impacts refugees’ ability to become self-reliant. Climate risks are considered in programming but not systematically: It’s more common in agricultural programs and less so in livelihoods programs that include business and cash grants.   

RSRI has also launched a grant opportunity to elevate refugee-led research and refugee perspectives. The grant will support five research projects undertaken by refugee-led organizations in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda to generate actionable insights and practical solutions to advance self-reliance.  

Long-term research on program impact is needed 

Improving data and evidence collection is essential for making refugee self-reliance programs more effective. Accurate and comprehensive data enables organizations to determine what strategies work best, in which contexts, and for whom—setting realistic targets and scaling successful approaches. Yet, there are few efforts to measure the self-reliance status of refugee households past the end of a project cycle to understand the lasting effects of an intervention.  

To respond to this knowledge gap, RefugePoint has been undertaking assessments six, 12, and 18 months after refugee clients graduate from its self-reliance program to better understand how sustainable the outcomes are.   

Broadening the evidence base on effective practices and policies by including diverse perspectives and generating research that fills the existing knowledge gaps will lead to a more nuanced understanding of refugee self-reliance. This deeper insight can then inform program and policy decisions and guide future investments.  

Photo credit: Diana Karua, RefugePoint