Making Refugee Integration Sustainable in Uganda: Access to Employment and Employability Programmes in the Host Country Labour Market

Abstract

Registered and undocumented refugees are officially denied the right to work, while refugees’ unofficial employment inside and outside refugee camps has been accepted by the Ugandan government. However, refugees’ engagement in the informal economy
makes them vulnerable to very low wages and unethical employment practices, leaving them without recourse to legal protection if abused. Restrictions on the freedom of movement and access to education further compromise the possibility of self-reliance, although limited positive change has taken place in 2019 in Uganda in relation to access to employment and employability programmes in the labour market. Furthermore, various initiatives to facilitate refugees’ access to work have been suppressed or replaced by restrictive measures. This study adopted a cross-sectional survey design where purely qualitative data approaches were used for the research. The study recommends that host countries must assess the potential for opening their labour markets to refugees, and enhancing access to decent work. Refugee integration should be approached holistically, rather than the focus being predominately on economic self-sufficiency.