Field Evaluation of Local Integration of Former Refugees in Cameroon

A two-person team funded by PRM traveled to Cameroon from June 23 to July 11, 2014 to conduct a field evaluation of local integration of refugees from the Central African Republic (CAR). The field evaluation was originally scheduled for February/March 2014, but because of the influx of new refugees from CAR at that time, the visit was postponed. While this delayed the overall evaluation, it was a good opportunity to consider how the experience with the earlier caseload could be applied to the new caseload.

The team interviewed 245 self-settled refugees from the 2005 caseload, including a mix of men and women as well as people from all age groups. The team also interviewed 219 Cameroonians in the host communities, and officials from the Government of the Republic of Cameroon (GRC), UNHCR, partner governments, and non-governmental organizations.

The full study, consisting of the desk study and three field visits, focuses on three key questions:

1. To what extent has the programming and engagement of PRM and UNHCR promoted local integration?
2. What programmatic and diplomatic interventions, as identified by PRM and UNHCR, were most and least successful?
3. What should PRM and its partners be doing to support the self-reliance of refugee populations for whom voluntary return and resettlement are not feasible.