Supporting Refugee-Led Organizations for Sustainable Futures for Young People in Kenya and Malawi
How can we ensure that young people in refugee communities are meaningfully included?
At the Market Systems Symposium, we shared our experiences and key learnings from our Displaced and Refugee Youth Enabling Environment Mechanism (DREEM) initiative, in partnership with Mastercard Foundation.
Refugee-led organizations (RLOs) are key to achieving systemic change. RLOs offer community-driven solutions using their deep local knowledge and trusted relationships to reach those most in need. They are also powerful agents of change, fostering empowerment, strengthening sustainable community institutions, and advocating for political participation.
To fully harness the potential of RLOs for systemic change, we are supporting refugee leadership and community-driven solutions, helping them create meaningful impact in their communities.
Refugees in Kenya and Malawi face very different challenges. In Kenya, for example, refugees in Kakuma Refugee Camp and Kalobeyei Integrated Settlement encounter significant barriers to accessing services and livelihoods, limiting their potential.
In Malawi, entrepreneurship and micro-businesses are growing in Dzaleka Camp, boosting local economic activity and strengthening community-led initiatives. However, this potential is stifled by systemic barriers such as lack of professional networks, limited access to formal finance, and insufficient knowledge of external markets. These barriers prevent entrepreneurs from successfully transitioning to formal employment or scaling their businesses.
Through the DREEM project, we are working with partners to create demand-driven, inclusive, and sustainable solutions. This involves understanding and responding to the actual needs of the market, ensuring that economic opportunities benefit both refugee and host communities, and building the capacity of RLOs to sustain these initiatives over the long-term.
By taking a market systems approach, we are helping RLOs shift from project implementers to long-term market actors, driving inclusive change from the ground up. We are also tapping into their deep community knowledge to foster gender equality, social cohesion, and economic inclusion.
Improving economic inclusion for young people in Kenya and Malawi
In Kenya, we are expanding economic opportunities for refugees by supporting entrepreneurs in Kakuma and Kalobeyei. Refugee and host community businesses were given access to a fund that combined financing with business development services for micro and small enterprises. This support includes tailored mentorship and coaching, capacity-building, and market linkages to help businesses gain the skills and resources needed to grow revenue and create opportunities for young people.
The initiative successfully strengthened enterprise resilience through tailored support, resulting in higher profits and job creation. More than 70% of supported enterprises reported increased profits. Nearly 90% of the 42 enterprises either launched new income streams or diversified their businesses. The digital cohort generated 72 jobs and completed 179 online tasks in two months.
A key learning was that combining business development services coaching with financial support proved highly effective, driving faster and more tangible business development. For women entrepreneurs, involving their spouses to build understanding and support at home was also crucial. In addition, child-friendly facilitation and flexible scheduling helped ensure strong participation and engagement.
In Malawi, we piloted a six-month initiative to strengthen the capacity of five RLOs and improve economic inclusion for young people. Through this process, each RLO designed capacity-building initiatives to equip refugees and host community members with vocational and business skills.
As a result, 57 youth gained jobs or launched businesses across a range of trades, indirectly benefitting another 72 individuals in the community. Importantly, the RLOs established ten new partnerships, helping to secure formal external support for their initiatives.
For RLOs to be sustainable partners, engaging them is key to transform refugee-hosting economies into inclusive and resilient market systems. Effective support must also recognize the crucial role of RLOs and foster social cohesion between refugee and host communities.