Sustainable Development in a Refugee Hosting Community. A study of hindering and facilitating factors for an INGO in the host community around the Dadaab refugee camps

Abstract

Background In the surroundings of the Dadaab Refugee Camps in Kenya lives a large pastoral population under less favourable conditions than the people inside the refugee camps. Many international NGO’s have started to support the hosting community, but there seems to be a lack of long term oriented development work. This project is based on a wonder over why it apparently is difficult for an international NGO to engage in long term, sustainable development directed at the host community of the camps. Aim & Research question The aim of the project is to shed some light on the overall issue of sustainable development in a refugee hosting community. This is done through the research question: What hinders and facilitates employment of a long term, sustainable development approach in the host community around the Dadaab refugee camps for the Danish Refugee Council? Methodology The study is based on internal and external documents from DRC and other bodies as well as interviews with DRC employees and an employee under the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The philosophy of science for this study is critical realism. Theory David Lewis’ conceptual framework for NGO management with the four components: (i) context, (ii) activities (iii) organisation and (iiii) relationships Conclusion DRC has some facilitating factors when it comes to conducting sustainable host community (HoC) work. For instance the organisations regional perspective on the Horn of Africa and the overall participatory approach it employs. However, we have found that the hindrances DRC is facing are very structural and difficult to overcome. DRC is mainly a refugee organisation and conducting successful HoC work would mean changing the organisational strategy. There are also external hindrances that are difficult for DRC to change: lack of competent partners specialised in development work and absence of a leading body. In light of these insights about hindrances, we have found reason to question whether DRC and similar refugees oriented INGOs should actually be undertaking HoC development in a setting like Dadaab