Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

© RSC
Market street in Kalobeyei settlement, Kenya.

Report cover showing market stall and shopThe new report Self-Reliance in Kalobeyei? Socio-Economic Outcomes for Refugees in North-West Kenya compares the socio-economic situation of South Sudanese recent arrivals (post-2015) living in the new Kalobeyei settlement (set up under a ‘self-reliance model’) to the situation of recent arrivals living in the old Kakuma camp (under an ‘aid model’).

Detailing research by the Refugee Economies Programme, it examines three central questions: How can we measure self-reliance for new arrivals in both contexts? To what extent is self-reliance greater in the new Kalobeyei settlement compared with Kakuma camp? And how can self-reliance be enhanced in such a difficult environment? In addition to outlining a methodologically innovative study, the report also proposes policy recommendations.

The Kalobeyei settlement was conceived in 2015, 30 km from Kakuma in Turkana County. A joint initiative of UNHCR and the regional government, its aim was to take pressure off the Kakuma camps and to transition refugee assistance from an aid-based model to a self-reliance model. It would offer opportunities for economic inclusion and greater interaction with the host community. However, the unexpected arrival of large numbers of South Sudanese refugees required a need for greater flexibility in the implementation of this model, and emergency assistance was made available. Nevertheless, Kalobeyei’s planners have retained a significant commitment to self-reliance. Given that recently arrived South Sudanese refugees have been allocated to both Kalobeyei (more of a ‘self-reliance model’) and Kakuma (more of an ‘aid model’), this offers a unique opportunity to compare outcomes for refugees across the two contexts.

The research is funded by the World Food Programme.

Self-Reliance in Kalobeyei? Socio-Economic Outcomes for Refugees in North-West Kenya, by Alexander Betts, Remco Geervliet, Claire MacPherson, Naohiko Omata, Cory Rodgers, and Olivier Sterck.

Read the report here >> (pdf)

Related content

Alexander Betts People

Naohiko Omata People

Olivier Sterck People

Refugee Economies in Kenya Publications

Refugee Economies: Forced Displacement and Development Publications

Talent Displaced: The Economic Lives of Syrian Refugees in Europe Publications