New Responses to the Refugee Crisis: Promises and Challenges in Uganda A case study of World Bank financing for refugee-hosting nations

At the 2016 Leaders’ Summit on Refugees and Migrants, Uganda doubled down on its progressive refugee policies, which allow refugees to work, go to school and access land. It opted to be the first country to pilot the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework of the New York Declaration. And it is among the first countries to receive financing through a new sub-window of the World Bank’s 18th replenishment of its International Development Association (IDA18), created to provide additional concessional financing to low-income countries hosting large numbers of refugees. Together, these commitments, framework and financing offer immense potential to meaningfully improve the lives of refugees and Ugandan host communities.

All eyes are on Uganda as an early adopter of these new tools and funding. How will World Bank-funded projects be balanced with existing humanitarian interventions for refugees—which are extensive in Uganda? How will the Bank interact with the complex set of actors, including the government, UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), non-governmental actors (NGOs), civil society, and refugees themselves? Will the Bank adapt its projects or move forward with business as usual in these unique contexts? Will the Bank’s initiatives encourage other donors to provide multiyear financing and support long-term solutions for refugees and host communities?

This case study starts to answer these questions by examining Uganda’s recent policy approaches and initiatives that respond to refugee and host populations. Although it is still early days, observations so far suggest mixed results. The Government’s willingness to engage with these new platforms and maintain its progressive refugee policies, especially in the face of global actors retreating from their share in the responsibility for responding to refugee crises, is impressive and important.