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151. ‘Sima’: The ‘Great Equalizer’ Pushes Everyone to Destitution: Gender Analysis for Drought Response in Ethiopia – Somali Region

Author:
Tess Dico-Young, Ankets Petros, and Bethel Terefe
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
Despite impressive economic growth recorded in Ethiopia over the past decade, chronic food insecurity affects many. The country’s subsistence crop and livestock agriculture is vulnerable to climate change and rainfall variability. The Ethiopian Somali region is one of the regions worst affected. A shortage of rainfall in the region over the past three consecutive years has resulted in huge losses of livestock and internal displacement of people. Although the drought affects everyone, men and women experience the impacts of the drought differently. The objective of this gender analysis is to understand the different impacts of the drought on men, women, girls, and boys, and their different coping mechanisms and potentials, in order to design and deliver humanitarian interventions responsive to their different needs. The study was conducted in Somali region, in six kebeles (wards/towns) of six woredas (districts) in the Jarrar, Doolo, and Afder zones.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Gender Issues, and Displacement
Political Geography:
Africa and Ethiopia

152. Transitioning to a Government-Run Refugee and Migrant Response in Greece: A Joint NGO Roadmap for More Fair and Humane Policies

Author:
Oxfam Publishing
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
Two years on from the peak of the ‘refugee crisis’ in Greece, the Greek state is beginning to take over management and financing of aspects of the reception and integration system, and many international nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) that came to assist with the then-humanitarian emergency are downsizing or preparing to exit the country entirely. At this turning point, the 13 undersigned NGOs believe it is critical to reflect on our field experiences, build on the progress collectively made, and provide recommendations for a smooth transition and a sustainable Greek Government-managed refugee and migrant reception and integration system. The transition to a government-run response is a positive step if implemented transparently, promptly, and in close collaboration with local governments, as well as the organisations currently providing services, soon to fall under the responsibility of the Greek Government. It is under this current state of affairs, and with the goal of preventing regression, that we write this report.
Topic:
Migration, Governance, Refugees, and Displacement
Political Geography:
Europe and Greece

153. Beneath the Dryland: Kenya Drought Gender Analysis

Author:
Maria Libertad Mella Dometita
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
In the arid and semi-arid land (ASAL) counties of Kenya, people are experiencing a food security and nutrition crisis as a result of the drought that has worsened since August 2016. The drought has undermined coping capacities and exacerbated vulnerabilities, for example by destroying livelihoods and triggering local conflicts over scare resources. This report draws on research conducted in two ASAL counties – Turkana and Wajir – on how people are coping. The main objective of the research was to understand the gendered needs, vulnerabilities and capacities of people in Turkana and Wajir and the specific gendered risks they face, in order to identify opportunities for increasing their agency, voice, participation and economic empowerment. The study also sought to understand the interactions between duty bearers and people affected by the drought, and the capacity of duty bearers to provide humanitarian assistance. The report presents key findings from the research and recommendations on how to strengthen the humanitarian response.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Famine, Governance, Food Security, and Displacement
Political Geography:
Kenya and Africa

154. Rethinking the Concept of a “Durable Solution”: Sahrawi Refugee Camps Four Decades On

Author:
Carmen Gomez Martin
Publication Date:
03-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
The Sahrawi people, who have long lived in the western part of the Sahara, have been housed in refugee camps in Tindouf, Algeria, since 1975—the year that Morocco took de facto control of Western Sahara. Their situation poses many questions, including those regarding the status of their state-in-exile, the role of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, and the length of their displacement. The conditions in the Tindouf camps present a paradigmatic case study of the liminal space inhabited by long-term refugees. Over the decades, residents have transformed these camps into a state-like structure with their own political and administrative institutions, which has enabled the international community to gain time to search for an acceptable political solution to the long-term conflict between the Polisario Front (the Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement) and the Moroccan government. The existence of a state-like structure, however, should not itself be understood as the ultimate solution for the thousands of people in these camps, who are currently living in extreme poverty, surviving on increasingly meager international aid, and enduring an exceptionally long wait for the favorable conditions whereby they may return to their place of origin. This essay is divided into three sections. First, it addresses the question of the Western Sahara from a historical point of view. The three major phases of the Sahrawi-Moroccan conflict provide the context for the formation and the current situation of the Sahrawi refugee camps. Second, it touches on the implementation of durable solutions for refugees living in camps and the supposedly transitional role of these spaces in such solutions. Finally, the essay applies an analytical framework to the paradigmatic case of the Sahrawi, demonstrating the contradictions between the theoretical model used to understand protracted refugee situations and the permanent problem regarding the rights of refugees.
Topic:
Poverty, Refugees, Displacement, Conflict, and Humanitarian Crisis
Political Geography:
Africa, Algeria, Morocco, and Western Sahara

155. The plight of Palestinian refugees in Syria in the camps south of Damascus

Author:
Metwaly Abo Naser
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution
Abstract:
After they took refuge in Syria after the 1948 war, Palestinians refugees were treated in the same way as other Syrian citizens. Permitted to fully participate in the economic and social life of Syrian society, they had the same civic and economic rights and duties as Syrians, except that they could neither be nominated for political office nor participate in elections. This helped them to feel that they were part of Syrian society, despite their refugee status and active role in the global Palestinian liberation struggle against the Israeli occupation of their homeland. At the start of the anti-government movement in Syria, when the peaceful uprising against the Assad regime turned into an armed conflict, the inhabitants of most Palestinian refugee camps tried to remain neutral. But as the conflict grew more violent and regional alliances changed, the disparities and significant differences between the Palestinian factions, especially between Hamas and Fatah, led to divisions in their positions vis-à-vis the Assad regime. These divisions were enhanced by the reduction of the role of the Palestinian diaspora in the struggle against the Israeli occupation and the new relevance of the geographic location of Palestinian refugee camps in the growing Syrian conflict. This was particularly true for the camps south of Damascus, because they separated the area west of Damascus from East Ghouta, both of which were opposition strongholds. These divisions resulted in the camps becoming targets in the armed conflict, leading to their bombardment and blockade, and the displacement of many of their residents to Lebanon, Turkey, Europe, and other locations both inside and outside Syria.
Topic:
Refugee Issues, Refugees, Refugee Crisis, Displacement, Humanitarian Crisis, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Middle East, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria

156. Insight on Syria: Documenting the "Burden of War" on Syrians

Author:
Michelle Nicholasen
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
The war in Syria is remarkable in its cumulative destruction of a society in a short six years. The toll on human life has been heavy; the involvement of multiple states, factions, and terrorist groups undermines resolution; the instigation of forced migration unprecedented; and the unfettered aerial bombardments against civilians—and perhaps most viciously, the deliberate destruction and targeting of health care facilities, health care workers, and patients—have defied all norms of war. Achieving an accurate picture of the human cost of this conflict has been an extraordinary challenge for aid agencies and health officials. In an effort to understand the impact of the war thus far, last winter the British medical journal the Lancet convened a commission of medical professionals to investigate and report on this conflict through the lens of public health. In Lancet parlance, a commission is always anchored at an elite university; in this case the American University of Beirut (AUB). In an early publication to set the stage, The Lancet-AUB Commission on Syria (the Commission) has called Syria “the most dangerous place on earth for health care providers,” and notes that the many reported atrocities “undermine the principles and practice of medical neutrality in armed conflict.” One of the three co-chairs leading the Commission is Weatherhead Center Faculty Associate Jennifer Leaning, François-Xavier Bagnoud Professor of the Practice of Health and Human Rights at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, who has studied war and its long-term effects on societies in many parts of the world, including in the Middle East. Her fellow Commission co-chairs are Professor Iman Nuwayhid, Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at AUB, and Dr. Samer Jabbour, a cardiologist on the AUB faculty. The Weatherhead Center sat down with Jennifer Leaning to discuss the Commission’s work, its goals, and the scope of the devastation in Syria.
Topic:
Civil War, Displacement, Civilians, Public Health, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:
Middle East and Syria

157. Beyond the Basics: Holistic Humanitarian Assistance for Syrians

Author:
Margo Berends
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
American Diplomacy
Institution:
American Diplomacy
Abstract:
Although Aleppo is now under the control of forces supporting the Syrian government and the city has been evacuated, it is but one city and the Syrian crisis is far from over. Millions have been displaced by the violence, either within Syria or across its borders, and the refugee crisis reverberates across the Middle East, Europe and beyond. While there has been much discussion of the refugee crisis, there has been limited coverage in mainstream American media of the needs of refugees and displaced people beyond the basics.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Humanitarian Aid, Non-Governmental Organization, Refugee Issues, Women, Displacement, and Public Policy
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Syria, Jordan, and United States of America

158. The Crisis of Higher Education for Syrian Refugees: Between Relief Work and Strategic Planning

Author:
Mohammad AlAhmad
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS)
Abstract:
Meeting the educational needs of refugees and displaced people, particularly the need for higher education, is considered one of the greatest humanitarian challenges facing the international community in its response to the Syrian crisis. UNHCR estimates that globally, only 1% of refugee youth are able to access higher education.
Topic:
Humanitarian Aid, Refugees, Displacement, and Higher Education
Political Geography:
Middle East and Syria

159. Partnering for Solutions

Author:
Vicki Valosik
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS)
Abstract:
CCAS, in partnership with the University of Kurdistan, brought together 40+ researchers this spring to discuss durable solutions to forced displacement in Iraq. Iraq has suffered from massive internal displacement for several decades, but with the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) the numbers of those displaced have grown drastically. More than three million Iraqis—or ten percent of the country’s population—currently live as internally displaced persons (IDPs). In an effort to address this crisis, the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS) and the Institute for the Study of International Migration (ISIM) at Georgetown recently joined efforts with the University of Kurdistan, Hawler (UKH) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to host the conference “Migration and Displacement in Iraq: Working Towards Durable Solutions.”
Topic:
Migration, Islamic State, Displacement, Kurds, and Higher Education
Political Geography:
Iraq, Middle East, North America, and Kurdistan

160. Refugee Flows Show Burundi Crisis Worsening

Author:
Africa Center for Strategic Studies
Publication Date:
03-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Africa Center for Strategic Studies
Abstract:
After two years the Burundi crisis continues to worsen. Despite government claims that the situation has normalized, facts on the ground suggest otherwise.
Topic:
Regional Cooperation, United Nations, Refugees, Displacement, and Violence
Political Geography:
Africa, Tanzania, Burundi, and East Africa