Publications
Syria’s Spontaneous Returns
This study seeks to provide an analysis of the current returns to Syria. The ongoing armed conflict in Syria has displaced millions of people inside and outside the country sparking an international humanitarian crisis. Since 2011, over 6 million Syrians have sought asylum outside Syria’s borders, and an additional 6.5 million people displaced internally. There is no clear picture of the number or conditions in places of return. This research contributes to filling this gap.
Returns to Syria should neither be promoted nor facilitated, as the focus must remain on investing in the preservation, and expansion, of protection space in host countries.
UNICEF/UNESCO/SH-A Global Initiative on Out-of-School-Children
The Global Initiative on Out-of-School-Children led by UNICEF and UNESCO aims to understand the situation of out-of-school children in each country studied, including the barriers to education faced and gaps in current approaches to addressing them. Samuel Hall has prepared this Afghanistan Country study with the Afghanistan Ministry of Education and UNICEF in order to provide recommendations to key stakeholders on how to address this significant – the report finds that an estimated 3.7 million children aged 7-17 are out-of-school in Afghanistan – challenge.
IOM / Migrant Smuggling to Canada
The study focuses on assessing migrant vulnerabilities, protection needs and exposure to exploitation
before migration, during their transit and upon arrival through a qualitative research based on migrants’
experiences of irregular migration to Canada, with a focus on Afghan and Syrian migrants.
DEMAC / Creating Opportunities to Work with Diasporas in Humanitarian Settings
Diaspora organisations (DOs) are newly recognised actors in the humanitarian space. DOs respond to crises such as those in Syria, Somalia, and Nigeria, which have shown the limitations of the traditional humanitarian sector. Their contributions to emergency response are under-studied and, as our research shows, often misunderstood due to a gap in knowledge about their work. This report contributes to filling this gap. It sets out to understand how DOs contribute to strengthening humanitarian response in crisis settings. We explore opportunities to work with DOs in humanitarian action through six case studies of DOs operating in Somalia and Syria. Fieldwork was conducted in seven remote sites of humanitarian intervention, including in Nigeria, where DO actions are still limited. A context analysis for Nigeria provides an entry point into understanding the potential for DOs to contribute in the northeastern region.
ReDSS: LOCAL INTEGRATION FOCUS-REFUGEES IN ETHIOPIA
Commissioned by The Regional Durable Solutions Secretariat (ReDSS), and Conducted by Samuel Hall, this report provides recommendations on how to improve local integration and self-reliance programming. The study assessed the level of local integration in Gambela (Gambela city and Pugnido Camp) and Somali regions (Jigjiga and Kebribeyah Camp) for refugees who have lived in Ethiopia for 20 years or more by comparing their situation to the host communities, as per Pledge 6 commitment.
Download the Executive Summary here
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NRC – A RESEARCH STUDY ON THE CHALLENGES OF IDP PROTECTION IN AFGHANISTAN
This report – based on research from Samuel Hall and commissioned by the Norwegian Refugee Council and the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre – follows on from a 2012 study of displacement patterns and the challenges inherent in protecting internally displaced people (IDPs) in Afghanistan. This new and updated analysis focuses on assessing the causes of prolonged and multiple displacement and seeks to present the key protection challenges still confronting displacement-affected Afghans today. Combining the voices of IDPs with analysis of primary data collected from IDPs and secondarily displaced returning refugees across Afghanistan, the study reveals major gaps in access to key humanitarian services as well as a set of persistent and entrenched vulnerabilities that blight the lives of IDPs.
IOM – Setting Standards for an Integrated Approach to Reintegration
The report, prepared and conducted by the Samuel Hall think tank under the IOM DFID-funded MEASURE Project, outlines recommendations to support sustainable reintegration of migrants who return to their home countries in the framework of AVRR programmes.
IDMC/NRC – Going “home” to Displacement
The data presented in this case study is drawn from 2017 research on IDPs’ protection needs carried out by Samuel Hall for the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). A large quantitative survey was conducted in Herat, Kabul, Kandahar, Kunduz and Nangarhar provinces, where data was collected in rural, peri-urban and urban areas. Of 2,580 respondents, 1,161 were returnee-IDPs and 1,420 other IDPs. The sample data is neither representative nor random, but combined with focus group discussions with displaced people and other community members, the research captures their narratives, protection needs and experiences.
IKEA Foundation – Coming Together: Family Tracing & Reunification
In 2017, Samuel Hall conducted a study on key issues, actors, and tools in the current global landscape of Family Tracing & Reunification (FTR), commissioned by IKEA Foundation. Based on an extensive and rigorous literature review and 22 additional key informant interviews with FTR providers and experts worldwide, the study focused on the current landscape of FTR tools and methods, their respective actors and key challenges to accessing and providing the best FTR support services possible.
FTR was understood in this study as a holistic process, covering all formal, informal, individual and institutionalised efforts to overcome separation of family members; ranging from the separating event until reintegration. The findings and recommendations of the study are designed to enable the Foundation and other engaged donors to create evidence-based interventions intended to reshape the current FTR landscape, including: 1) Reshaping and optimising the FTR process and its tools; 2) Reshaping and optimising the FTR actor landscape; 3) Reshaping the legal landscape to allow separated persons to access reunification; and 4) Supporting separated persons’ futures through technology.
CiC – Hope behind bars: the boys of the Kabul Juvenile Rehabilitation Centre
Every province of Afghanistan is required by law to have a Juvenile Rehabilitation Centre (JRC) in its
capital city to house and rehabilitate children in conflict with the law sentenced to detention. An alternative to full detention is the Open JRC, where children spend daytime in rehabilitation and evenings and weekends at home. The Open JRC in Kabul nevertheless remains a detention facility.
This research offers a pragmatic view of the lived experiences of children in the Kabul Juvenile Rehabilitation Centre (JRC) and situates detention within their life events, where neglected needs and incurred stresses impact their later adult lives and life opportunities. While strides have been made to improve this situation, the Kabul JRC is still short on consistent and quality rehabilitation programmes and reintegration support in line with national and international standards. Existing initiatives generally lack specifically trained staff, resources, management, and facilities.
This study employed child-sensitive qualitative and quantitative methods, surveying the majority of boys detained in Open and Closed Centres of the JRC (112) and triangulating and adding depth to findings with focus group discussions (2), case studies (4), and key informant interviews (15). The results underlined the diversity of backgrounds, ages and crimes amongst the boys. Furthermore, the results highlighted the many similarities shared between children inside and outside the JRC – calling for integrated approaches for existing and planned services.
EARF – Understanding intra-regional labour migration in the East Africa Community – Literature Review
This report investigates intra-labour migration in the East African Community (EAC) through a literature review of existing evidence. The aim of this study, commissioned by DFID and Sida and conducted by Samuel Hall, Maastricht University and the University of Oxford, is to generate new evidence to support government and development interventions aimed at eliminating poverty and reducing vulnerabilities in the EAC by exploring the potential of labour migration across five countries: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.
World Bank – Subnational Doing Business in Afghanistan Study
Doing Business in Afghanistan 2017 is the first report of the subnational Doing Business series in Afghanistan. It measures business regulations and their enforcement in 5 provinces. The provinces are compared against each other, and with 189 other economies worldwide.
OCHA – February Humanitarian Bulletin
Conflict, disasters, and other humanitarian emergencies have broad reaching consequences, but often lost in emergency responses are the psychosocial impacts of these events. Yet such crises can have a detrimental effect on psychosocial wellness, as demonstrated by Samuel Hall research with urban youth in Kabul. 71 per cent of youth interviewed by Samuel Hall had experienced a traumatic event, with many reporting symptoms associated with trauma. Our data shows that the mental health of these youth should absolutely be considered a priority – the time for action is now.
Overseas Development Institute – Journeys on hold
Around 5,000 Eritreans leave their country every month. They go for a range of reasons, including compulsory National Service, political persecution, and a restricted economy that offers few opportunities.
Many travel directly to neighbouring Ethiopia, where there is an open-asylum policy for refugees, including an extensive camp-based system of protection, and a variety of interventions designed to both support people’s livelihoods and deter irregular secondary migration. But despite this humanitarian and development assistance, for many people, their journey doesn’t end in Ethiopia.
Samuel Hall supported ODI in the development of this working paper that sets out to better understand whether, by providing alternative options, it is possible for policy-makers to prevent or reduce irregular migration from countries- and regions-of-origin. It looks at two measures in particular: in-country livelihood support, such as vocational trainings and loans, and refugee resettlement programming. Findings draw on qualitative interviews with Eritreans in both the northern province of Tigray as well as the country’s capital, Addis Ababa.
The paper finds that Ethiopia is a vital country of asylum, offering the prospect of freedom and security. However, despite better prospects relative to Eritrea, many people continue to find it difficult to pursue decent, fulfilling and relevant livelihoods.
Evidence shows that in-country livelihood support is helping people get by and meet basic survival needs. But potential impacts are being undermined by the fact that refugees living in Ethiopia are denied the right to work.
Alongside this, refugee resettlement has the effect of slowing down irregular migration, particularly as it provides people with an opportunity to move onwards safely and legally. However, this effect appears to weaken over time as people’s trust in the formal system declines, resulting in a gradual deflection into irregularity.
In addition, readers can access a scrolling webpage, featuring additional stories, photographs, infographics and a short documentary.
Download the working paper here and the executive summary here.
HelpAge – Older People In Situations of Migration In Africa: The Untold Migration Story
Older people in Africa are involved in all aspects of the migration chain: they are voluntary or forced migrants themselves, they shape the migration experience of others by funding youth migration and being involved in the decision-making process, they also benefit from remittances. Yet, they remain invisible in migration policy, as well as aid and development planning. This briefing for HelpAge tells the untold story of older people in the migration ecosystem in Africa. It highlights the importance of including older people in migration policies and practice – whether they are left behind, on the move, or returning to their country of origin. It identifies the key challenges facing this generation, explores policy options and calls for more thorough research to improve understanding of the capabilities and needs of older people in situations of migration in Africa.
Dubai Cares – Strengthening Early Childhood Education Programme Evaluation
The overall goal of this research was to conduct an evaluation of the programme considering its effects after conclusion using the OECD-DAC criteria (relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability) to inform Dubai Cares’ design, development and investment in potential future programme iterations, or similar programming in the Afghan context. The research team conducted 1225 surveys with parents and children as well as 20 key informant interviews and 40 focus group discussions including also teachers and other community stakeholders, in order to gather statistically significant results and draw out the details of learning environments and behaviours. The results of this research underline a largely successful programme with strong community involvement. Positive impacts on students, parents and children can clearly be measured. The relevance of the programme is undeniable. Nevertheless, some clear opportunities to inform future programming are also highlighted, particularly in strengthening the impressive community-driven sustainability initiatives.
UNICEF – Evaluation of the Youth Education Pack Programme in Somalia
Based on the requirements of Global Outcome 5, an evaluation of the UNICEF YEP programme has been commissioned by UNICEF to understand lessons that can be learnt from providing informal education in Somalia, both in the terms of delivering relevant skills that can improve the lives of beneficiaries, and the impact a tailored curriculum can have on peace building in Somalia when drivers of conflict are taken into account. The central question of this evaluation is therefore: ‘Has the implementation of YEP in Somalia had an impact on conflict drivers among marginalised youth by reducing reliance on negative coping and strategies and improving access to sustainable livelihoods?’
IOM – The Economic Impact of Migration in Agadez
The present study assesses the economic interactions between migrants and the host community, and identifies concrete innovative ways to support their aspirations to a better life. Three key questions are answered: What drives migration in and through Agadez, and who are the actors involved? What is the economy of migration in the town of Agadez? Finally, what, concretely, can IOM (International Organization for Migration) and other stakeholders do to support both host community members and migrants?
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ILO – Scoping Study on Public-Private Dvp. Partnerships in the Renewable Energy Sector
This Scoping Study for a Renewable Energy Skills Development PPDP Facility seeks to understand how a PPDP (Public Private Development Partnership) training initiative can successfully bridge the renewable energy skills gap in the Somali power sector while ensuring a sustainable impact on the local population.
MERCY CORPS – EVALUATION OF THE SOMALI YOUTH LEADERS INITIATIVE
Understanding what works to reduce violence, including violent extremism, is a key priority for many policymakers. Despite this need, to date there is very little research evaluating the effects of development programs on violence reduction. To address this knowledge gap, Mercy Corps undertook a rigorous impact evaluation of a 5-year stability-focused youth program in Somalia known as the Somali Youth Leaders Initiative (SYLI).
This report was written by Beza Tesfaye, Mercy Corps Conflict and Governance Research Manager. Samuel Hall was in charge of all data collection, field reports and preliminary analysis.