How Night-Time Street Lighting Affects Refugee Communities

UNHCR installed solar-powered street lights in half of the 14 villages in Uganda’s Rhino Camp in 2015 with funding from the Safe from the Start initiative. Refugee communities worked with UNHCR to determine where to install lights both to prevent violence and facilitate productive community activity. Rhino Camp is one of 9 displacement contexts in the world where UNHCR has recently installed community lighting. To discern whether night-time lighting prevents violence and crime, improves safety, and encourages productive night-time activity, UNHCR conducted a population-based study described in the report. The study represents the first known research on the protective effect of community lighting in a refugee settlement. In addition, the assessment utilized a participatory research approach in which refugees led data collection and analysis. Moreover, the assessment’s focus on women’s and youth empowerment contributed to the success of the overall project.