HPG Working Paper The Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework Progress in Kenya Sorcha O’Callaghan, Farah Manji, Kerrie Holloway and Christina Lowe September 2019 About the authors Sorcha O’Callaghan is a Research Associate with the Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG) at ODI. Farah Manji is an independent, Kenyan research consultant. Kerrie Holloway is a Research Officer with HPG, and Christina Lowe is a Research Officer with ODI’s Social Protection and Social Policy Group. Acknowledgements This paper is part of a larger set of research commissioned by the IKEA Foundation on the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) and opportunities for self-reliance among refugees in East Africa. We would like to thank the Foundation, especially Annemieke Tsike-Sossah, and Beth Gertz of Seven Hills Advisors, for their support on the project. The team would also like to thank Christina Bennett, Wendy Fenton and Veronique Barbelet from HPG for their support and guidance to research. Thanks too to Katie Forsythe for her expert editing. This research was undertaken with the support of the IKEA Foundation. This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Readers are encouraged to reproduce material for their own publications, as long as they are not being sold commercially. ODI requests due acknowledgement and a copy of the publication. For online use, we ask readers to link to the original resource on the ODI website. The views presented in this paper are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of ODI or our partners. Contents 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Methodology 1 1.2 Outline of the report 1 2 The Global Compact on Refugees and the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework 2 3 Kenya in brief: refugee hosting and its impacts 3 3.1 Kenya’s refugee model 3 3.2 Refugees in context: difficult economic conditions facing host communities 4 3.3 Security and economic considerations result in different refugee approaches in Kenya 6 4 CRRF in-country: state of play and opportunities 7 4.1 The CRRF in Kenya: a slow start and a stalled process 7 4.2 CRRF, responsibility-sharing and financing 9 4.3 Challenges to CRRF and its transformational objectives 10 5 Putting the CRRF principles into practice: achievements in Kenya 12 5.1 Kalobeyei: demonstrating the effectiveness of working with local government 12 5.2 Dadaab: the next Kalobeyei? 13 5.3 Navigating ambiguity and creating opportunities for refugee inclusion based on practice 13 6 Supporting the CRRF: options for donors and advocates 14 6.1 Creating an enabling environment for the CRRF 14 6.2 Supporting self-reliance activities for refugee and host community economic opportunities through project-level initiatives 15 7 References 16 Humanitarian Policy Group iii Tables and figures Tables Table 1: Refugees and asylum-seekers in Kenya, by country of origin 3 Table 2: Timeline of key milestones in Kenya’s CRRF process 8 Figures Figure 1: Refugees and asylum-seekers in Kenya, by settlement 4 iv The Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework: progress in Kenya Acronyms CIDP County Integrated Development Plan CRRF Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework DRA Department of Refugee Affairs DRC Democratic Republic of Congo DRDIP Development Response to Displacement Impacts Project EU European Union EUTF EU Emergency Trust Fund for Stability and Addressing the Root Causes of Irregular Migration and Displaced Persons in Africa FAO Food and Agriculture Organization GCR Global Compact on Refugees HSNP Hunger Safety Net Programme IDA International Development Association IFC International Finance Corporation IGAD Inter-Governmental Authority on Development ILO International Labour Organization IRC International Rescue Committee ITC International Trade Centre KISEDP Kalobeyei Integrated Socio-Economic Development Program KDRDIP Kenya Development Response to Displacement Impacts Project MFI micro-finance institution NGO non-governmental organisation NHIF National Hospital Insurance Fund RAS Refugee Affairs Secretariat RSD Refugee Status Determination SDG Sustainable Development Goal Humanitarian Policy Group v SME small- and medium-sized enterprises SNV Netherlands Development Organisation UN United Nations UNGA UN General Assembly UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNICEF UN Children’s Fund WFP World Food Programme vi The Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework: progress in Kenya 1 Introduction 1.1 Methodology 1.2 Outline of the report This study is part of an IKEA Foundation-commissioned The paper is structured as follows: Section 2 describes research project by the Humanitarian Policy Group the CRRF and the Global Compact for Refugees (HPG) at ODI. The overall objective of the research is (GCR). Kenya’s refugee-hosting model and the to contribute towards realising the goals of the Global factors that influence it are discussed in Section 3. Compact on Refugees and the Comprehensive Refugee Section 4 examines the status of the CRRF in Kenya. Response Framework (CRRF). The research takes stock It explores the challenges to the establishment of the of current progress towards reaching CRRF goals in CRRF architecture and process and sets out how, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda, with an emphasis despite this, some progress on CRRF objectives are on refugee self-reliance in each country. still evident. It examines shifts in donor funding and support towards more developmental approaches, This paper on Kenya is one of four country papers, consistent with those of the CRRF, as well as which together inform an overall thematic paper implications for aid delivery models. Section 5 on the CRRF. It draws on an in-depth literature outlines in more depth some of the achievements review of published and grey literature as well as in Kenya in terms of applying CRRF objectives, 31 interviews with key stakeholders, including from in particular in Kalobeyei settlement. Section 6, national and donor governments, donor governments, the concluding section, ends with some strategic non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and private opportunities to catalyse greater refugee inclusion sector actors. and self-reliance in Kenya. Humanitarian Policy Group 1 2 The Global Compact on Refugees and the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework On 19 September 2016, the United Nations General international cooperation. The CRRF is incorporated Assembly (UNGA) unanimously adopted the New into the GCR, and the two frameworks share the same York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants, four objectives (identified above). reaffirming the importance of international refugee rights and committing to strengthen protection and The GCR sets out a ‘programme of action’ with concrete support for people on the move (UNGA, 2016). The measures to help meet its objectives. This includes Declaration focuses on supporting those countries and arrangements to share responsibilities; mainly through communities that host large numbers of refugees and a Global Refugee Forum (every four years, the first in promoting refugee inclusion, ensuring the involvement December 2019) and support for specific situations as of development actors from an early stage and bring well as arrangements for review through the Global together national and local authorities, regional and Refugee Forum and other mechanisms. international financial institutions, donor agencies and the private and civil society sectors to generate a ‘whole Commentators have highlighted numerous challenges of society’ approach to refugee responses (UNHCR, associated with the CRRF and GCR. Critical among them 2018a). Many of these concepts are not new. However, are the exclusion of key actors (such as communities and the adoption of the New York Declaration is viewed local authorities), insufficient financial support from the as a welcome sign of continued global solidarity and international community and the limited engagement commitment to comprehensive responses to refugee of the private sector (Montemurro and Wendt, 2017; protection at a time of unprecedented displacement and Thomas, 2017; ICVA, 2018). Commentators have noted, retrenchment from multilateralism. along with other shortcomings, that the CRRF lacks a monitoring framework even though it had been foreseen The New York Declaration called upon the United in the GCR (Huang et al., 2018). In 2018, UNHCR Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to presented a Global Dashboard that assesses five outcome develop and initiate the application of a CRRF in specific areas charting progress towards the CRRF objectives, situations that featured large-scale movements of refugees but noted it will only be possible to measure this several and protracted refugee situations, with four key objectives: years after the CRRF’s implementation (UNHCR, 2018c). However, with the first Global Refugee Forum scheduled 1. Ease pressure on host countries. for December 2019, there is interest among many 2. Enhance refugee self-reliance. stakeholders to capture progress under the CRRF. 3. Expand access to third-country solutions. 4. Support conditions in countries of origin for As one of the 15 original roll-out countries for return in safety and dignity. the CRRF, Kenya’s experience provides a unique perspective on how CRRF objectives can be On 17 December 2018, UNGA affirmed the non- achieved through working with county government, binding GCR, following two years of consultations demonstrating the positive implications for refugee (UNGA, 2018). The GCR is a framework for more hosts of more inclusive approaches to refugee hosting