Kenya

“We are, after all, the pillars upon which the future of the refugee community will be built.” Jean-Marie, based in Kalobeyei Settlement, Kenya, spoke those powerful words about the role of entrepreneurs in refugee communities. How he and his partner Adele came to embody those words started seven years ago in difficult circumstances. When you’re…

The 2024 International Seminar brought together youth from Canada, Kenya, Jordan, and Malawi, both refugees and non-refugees, in a collaborative research environment aimed at enhancing global connections and tackling relevant research questions.  The International Seminar explores a contemporary development issue through research and insights of young people, collaborating directly with key actors in one or…

Looking back on his life’s journey, Peter Kimutai reflects fondly on how things have turned out for him.  “I never imagined I would get this far,” he says. At 32 years old, Peter runs a thriving electronics shop in Kakuma town in Northwestern Kenya. Born and raised in Turkana County, Peter lived a nomadic life…

Kakuma refugee camp is home to over 250,000 refugees of over 23 nationalities, with a large population of youth between the ages of 18 to 35 years. These young people have aspirations to generate an income, be self-reliant, and support their families. Every day, they face a myriad of challenges in these efforts, including delays…

Results of the 2021 – 2023 Partner Innovation Fund Cohort With more than 120 million people forcibly displaced around the world, all organizations, institutions, and businesses need to examine how they can better integrate refugees and other displaced people into their programs and services. Stand alone initiatives for refugees are no longer sufficient to enable…

Are you passionate about the socio-economic development of young people? Do you want to help strengthen the cohesion between refugee youth and the communities hosting them? Are you a Canadian citizen or permanent resident between the ages of 18 and 30? WUSC invites you, from July 28 to August 24, 2024, to participate in the…

What we have learned from our work to improve girls’ education in Kakuma and Dadaab Refugee Camps and the surrounding host communities in Turkana, Garissa and Wajir counties in Kenya It has been a decade since WUSC and its partners launched the Kenya Equity in Education Project (KEEP). In that time, we have developed key…

Receiving a work permit or business license creates positive impacts in the lives of refugees and for their communities. In practice, access to work permits and business licences is complicated by several barriers. A new report, led by the University of Oxford’s Refugee-Led Research Hub and supported by Mastercard Foundation and WUSC, explores the gaps that exist between policy and practice of refugee access to Class M work permits and business licences in Kenya, and identifies what support is needed to improve access to sustainable livelihoods for urban and camp refugees

The barriers facing women’s full economic participation are many. In some countries, there are legal constraints to women’s rights to work, including a lack of protection from sexual harassment in the workplace. Women also bear a disproportionate responsibility for unpaid care and domestic work and are less likely to have access to education, technology, and…

Why it Matters : Refugee-led organizations like L’AFRIKANA are able to understand the needs of refugees more intimately than their non-refugee-led counterparts — their story is an opportunity to learn what works and what doesn’t. By Neha Chollangi, Future of Good This journalism is made possible by a partnership with WUSC and the International Forum. See…