Business The social and economic benefits of refugee arrivals
LOUISE CORDAUDREY SACKSSTEPHEN WINKLER | https://blogs.worldbank.org/ Uganda’s northern district of Adjumani borders South Sudan and is home to around 244,000 refugees. If you visit, you may be surprised not to find the tell-tale signs of refugee quarters — fences, camps, and other kinds of demarcations. Instead, refugees live alongside locals, enjoying basic liberties like the right to work, freedom of movement, and access to critical basic services. This integrative approach toward refugee hosting has been a cornerstone of Uganda’s domestic policy since the 1960s. A new policy research working paper on Inclusive Refugee-Hosting in Uganda Improves Local Development and Prevents Public Backlash by Yang-Yang Zhou, Guy Grossman and Shuning Ge, part of a broader new series of research on Forced Displacement, further reiterates that the presence of refugees has significantly improved access to social services, such as education and healthcare, for host communities in Uganda , shattering popular stereotypes of refugees as a source of tension, protests, or economic drain for a country. Uganda’s approach to hosting 1.6 million refugees— the largest refugee settlement in Africa and the fourth largest in the world—has also helped quell insecurities or negative sentiments towards migrant presence in the nation, mitigating the likelihood of backlash against them. Almost 12,000 miles away on a different continent, Peru is seeing similar gains with the large arrival of Venezuelans, according to a new policy research working paper on Immigration, Labor Markets and Discrimination: Evidence from the Venezuelan Exodus in Peru by Andre Groeger, Gianmarco León-Ciliotta, and Steven Eric Stillman. The presence of more than a million Venezuelans has helped Peru improve local labor market conditions, reduce crime rates, increase levels of trust between neighbors, and improve satisfaction with public services. These improved economic conditions have helped to decreased anti-immigrant discrimination. These findings align with new analysis of nearly 100 refugee camps across Africa. In the policy research working paper titled The Geography of Displacement, Refugees’ Camps and Social Conflicts, authors Nicola Daniele Coniglio, Vitorocco Perag-
ine, and Davide Vurchio show that, while the initial shock of refugee arrivals can at first increase social tension, refugee arrivals contribute to improved economic conditions in the medium and long term in host communities with no negative impacts on social cohesion.
Forced Displacement Today
Understanding and carefully studying the conditions under which host communities are successful at integrating people who have been forced to flee their home is critical for the international community . Here are some lessons emerging from this new series of studies:
Large arrivals of refugees do not necessarily have a UNHCR estimates that 84 million people were forc- negative effect on the attitudes of host communities ibly displaced by the middle of 2021, including over or on economic outcomes of a region or country. 20 million refugees and a growing number of internally displaced people (IDPs). In just ten years, the In Peru, the inflow of Venezuelans who have a right share of the world’s population that has been forcibly to work is associated with positive labor market efdisplaced due to conflict, violence, and persecution, fects and more positive attitudes towards refugees. as well as political, economic, and environmental crises, has grown from 1 in 159 to 1 in 95. Humanitarian assistance and development investments should be directed both to refugees and host Despite the magnitude of displacement around the communities to mitigate negative effects of disworld, including the 3.7 million people recently placement. Investments in infrastructure and serdisplaced from Ukraine, there is a remarkable lack vices are key to meeting the increased demand of of research on the topic to inform policies and de- the population shocks generated by the arrival of velopment investments. To fill this gap, the World displaced people and to avoid tensions over limited Bank together with UNHCR and the UK Foreign, resources. In Uganda, areas exposed to more refCommonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) ugees experienced better access to public and pricommissioned a series of studies to understand how vate schools, health centers, and roads as a result of to prevent conflict and promote cohesion among resources allocated from aid, reducing tensions becommunities experiencing displacement. A find- tween refugees and host communities. ing that’s consistent across the board in the studies highlighted above on Uganda and Peru is, yes, Investments paired with high-quality facilitation forced displacement is a global crisis that poses sig- can help ensure that benefits reach refugees and nificant developmental challenges. Yet, if managed host communities and promote social cohesion. Faeffectively with inclusive policies and development cilitated refugee–host interactions can improve host investments, forced displacement can bring about communities’ perceptions of refugees and internally social and economic prosperity . These programs displaced persons. Community Driven Developand policies can assume many forms, including ment approaches that bring refugees and host resimulti-sectoral development investments in services dents together for joint planning, decision making, and infrastructure; social assistance (i.e., cash trans- and oversight of investments in essential infrastrucfers, vouchers, workfare programs, grants to com- ture and services can foster positive interactions. munities); educational scholarships; skills training programs; mental health support; and public mes- It’s said that the best way to predict the future is to saging to evoke empathy towards refugees and pre- invent it. Countries have much to gain economically empt xenophobia. and socially from thinking magnanimously and innovatively about how to integrate displaced people into mainstream society. The positive effects may take time to emerge but can be well worth the wait and enable all citizens to thrive in dignity and prosperity.
Working Toward Collective Social and Economic Prosperity
TT 148 | April 12th - April 18th | 2022
