In the beginning of 2019, UNHCR revised its approach towards Livelihoods, stepping back from direct implementation while continuing to be an active member of the Livelihood and Resilience Sector Working Group, to advocate for funding in this sector, and to engage development partners and the private sector to take a more prominent role in this area, in line with the priorities of the Refugee Response Plan.
This strategic shift was also in line with the Global Compact for Refugees that articulates the importance of supporting refugees and host countries over the longer term, to promote and expand economic growth and livelihoods and to enhance self-reliance and resilience of refugees and the hosting communities, especially in protracted refugee situations.
Therefore, the scope and scale of livelihood interventions implemented by UNHCR and the partners in 2019 significantly reduced. The support was targeted towards new refugee arrivals and vulnerable households as well as farmers /business groups. The following were the achievements:
- 8,250 new refugee arrivals and refugees organized into small-scale farmer groups, received productions kits comprised of planting materials and tools as well as training in good agronomic practices for crops such as ground nuts, green grams and chia.
- 3,075 asylum-seekers and refugees received entrepreneurship and business skills training to enable them start and grow businesses for increased incomes.
- 395 asylum-seekers and refugees received vocational skills training in various trades and were provided with start-up kits to promote self-employment.
- 3,589 asylum-seekers and refugees received cash support for livelihood provisioning in form of cash for work and grants to business groups to establish micro-enterprises for income generation. Hence, enabling them to meet their basic needs and acquire assets.
- 72 Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs), comprised of 1,440 asylum-seekers and refugees, were formed and provided with VSLA kits to enable them to manage their group operations.
- 1,282 refugees in the South-Western region settlements were employed by implementing partners and contractors, thus earning wages and incentives.
Funding constraints continued to be a challenge throughout the year. To address this, UNHCR continued engagements with development partners, UN agencies, Government and the private sector. The following are some of the projects that demonstrate UNHCR’s new way of working in livelihoods and economic inclusion:
- UNHCR and partners worked for financial inclusion of refugees and host communities in Uganda for the period 2019-2023, implemented by three microfinance institutions. The program will contribute to the protection and solutions of 100,000 people of concern and host populations, by improving their livelihoods and self-reliance through the facilitation of access to credit for business activities.
- UNHCR and partners planned to provide refresher trainings to and monitoring of village savings and loans associations, in order to strengthen their operations and link them to financial institutions, using digital solutions. This enabled them to access micro-credit and non-financial services provided by formal financial services providers.
- UNHCR collaborated with partners on Development Response to Displacement Impacts Project, targeting refugees for livelihood activities.