Kenya: Empowering refugees and host communities in Dadaab through market-led solutions (EMPOWER)

Kenya has generously hosted forcibly displaced people since the early 1990s, with the vast majority living in camps. The Dadaab Refugee Complex in Garissa County is the biggest refugee-hosting area in Kenya. In April 2024, over 382,639 displaced people were hosted in Dadaab. The Government of Kenya (GoK) has recognized the need for more comprehensive solutions and initiated a shift from encampment to integrated settlement policy. The Refugee Act 2021 along with key policy documents on national and county level are aiming at the transformation of refugee camps into integrated settlements and to lift restrictions imposed on displaced persons. However, the operationalization of this shift is still lagging behind and the socio-economic integration of refugees remains hampered.

This credit proposal (CP) is based on a market assessment commissioned by Switzerland, identifying opportunities for a thriving market economy in the Dadaab Refugee Complex. The openness of the current GoK adminstration to shift from a securitized encampment policy towards integrated settlements, expressed through the Shirika Plan, allows for a durable solutions project in the Dadaab Refugee context. The proposed project is a third phase and part of the EP “Regional Support to Durable Solutions of Displacement-affected Communities 2019-2033’ spanning over Kenya, Somalia (Saameynta) and Ethiopia (IOM Durable Solutions) and the broader Horn of Africa (Financing Durable Solutions Initiative).

Improve social integration, digital and financial inclusion, and economic self-reliance for refugees and host communities (DACs) in Dadaab Refugee Complex within Garissa County.

This will be achieved through market-led, private sector solutions that strengthen local micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), increase trade and enhance the rights of DACs in government policies.

Ultimately, this will lift DACs out of aid dependency.

With Switzerland’s financial support, Inkomoko will reach out to:

• 5,000 additional DAC clients, targeting two main groups: refugees (80%) and their hosts (20%). In line with its gender policy, Inkomoko thrives to include 50-60% women and youth in its target groups.
• Policy-makers at the county and national levels for policy dialogue, coordination and advocacy.

1. DACs have the skills to develop, manage and grow their businesses.
2. DACs have access to financial instruments and are fully bankable.
3. DAC-led businesses in the Dadaab Refugee Complex are better linked to regional markets and private sector actors.
4. The national and county policy environment is more inclusive and enables DACs to achieve better economic integration.

Resultados previstos:  

• Output 1.1: DACs complete Inkomoko’s Business Growth Support (BGS) training and consulting
• Output 1.2: A new client-facing digital services platform has been deployed, offering gender-equitable access to Inkomoko’s services
• Output 2.1: DACs have access to three inclusive Sharia-compliant financial service products that were brought to market
• Output 2.2: An agreement has been reached with financial institutions to revise banking modalities for DACs
• Output 3.1: DACs received Inkomoko’s market linkage training and consulting services
• Output 3.2: DACs have been enabled to expand their businesses into specific markets and value chains
• Output 4.1: Annual government workshops have been conducted to boost the discussion on refugee management policy
• Output 4.2: A policy-making process at county level has been initiated to establish a revolving fund for increased access to finances for DAC-led MSMEs

Resultados de las fases anteriores:  

Key findings from the market assessment conducted by iGravity/Danish Refugee Council (DRC) to assess the potential and the ongoing challenges of the economy in the Dadaab Refugee Complex include:

• Vibrant, diverse, and vastly informal business environment, led by MSMEs.
• Regulatory and infrastructural challenges as barriers for economic development.
• Private sector engagement is limited due to the prevalent aid, lack of access to finances and difficulties to reach financial sustainability.

Other Swiss-funded projects that were or are still being implemented in the Dadaab Refugee Complex include Switzerland’s multi-bi support for UNHCR, a small action on protection and livelihoods for the most vulnerable refugees implemented by DRC from November 2022 to April 2024 and support to the Refugee Consortium of Kenya (RCK) by the Peace and Human Rights Division. The key result and lessons learnt from these interventions is that while they have helped a great deal to save lives and alleviate suffering, they were not designed to achieve sustainable results regarding self-reliance and socio-economic empowerment of DACs. CH has supported other DS-related projects in Kakuma, including the Skills4Life Project and the IFC-Kakuma Kalobeyei Challenge Fund (KKCF). The KKCF initiative has provided proof of concept and valuable lessons on private sector engagement in forced displacement context.

Projects: Saameynta, IOM Durable Solutions; Financing Durable Solutions Initiative; Kakuma Kalobeyei Challenge Fund (KKCF); Regional Livestock Programme (RLP); KUSP II (World Bank); ABLI-Garissa (EU); PROSPECTS partnership (NL); other projects to be added.

Actors: World Bank; DRC; Equity Bank; KCB Bank; UNHCR; UNHabitat; TechnoServe; KCIC; Garissa County Government; Department of Refugee Services (DRS); Acumen; Regional Durable Solutions Secretariat (ReDSS); Refugee Consortium Kenya (RCK).