World Bank - Regional Learning on Development Responses to Forced Displacement in the Great Lakes Region: Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia
October 2021
The World Bank commissioned Samuel Hall to develop and coordinate a year-long series of learning events among government representatives from the Great Lakes region to generate a regional dialogue and government-to-government exchange on development responses to forced displacement. Through unique peer-to-peer learning model, the learning series centred on government sharing their understanding, learning, and best practices on selected topics, with a specific link to wider development responses and planning processes.
Event 1: Health in the context of forced displacement and COVID-19 responses: lessons learned and ways forward. The first event provided a common foundation and vision of “development responses” that could be built on over the four learning events. The lens of health provided a practical opportunity to consider this question in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, while offering an easier buy-in to the learning events collectively, for both local and national authorities, given its relevance and timeliness.
Download Event 1 output: Engaging Refugee Hosting Communities (English) (French)
Download Event output: COVAX Distribution (English) (French)
Event 2: Sectoral approaches to integration and (re)integration in Great Lakes countries: Education, documentation, and other sectors of intervention for displacement-affected communities. The second event investigated two key durable solutions to displacement - integration and return to countries of origin – and the ways in which access to education, livelihoods, and documentation can be facilitated or play a role in improved community integration or (re)integration.
Download Event 2 output: Documentation (English) (French)
Download Event 2 output: Education(English) (French)
Event 3: Sustainable livelihoods and the right to employment for forcibly displaced populations and hosts. The livelihood conversation is central to durable solutions as skills gained and developed during time spent in host communities can inform new initiatives. The third event took a national and local angle to learn from best practices to promote livelihoods for the forcibly displaced and their hosts: from work permits to refugee-host partnerships, economic initiatives, and economic inclusion (including financial inclusion), through considering potential agriculture-based and non-farm livelihood prospects.
Download Event 3 output: Integrated Approaches to Farm-Based Livelihoods (English) (French)
Download Event 3 output: Private Sector Involvement in Non-Farm Livelihoods (English) (French)
Event 4: Data & evidence-based responses to forced displacement in the Great Lakes. Over the course of the three learning events, data and analytics in displacement emerged as a crucial part of informing government policies and improving targeted development programmes. Feedback from participants revealed significant gaps in data at the national and regional levels. The final event focused on data initiatives and a discussion around the capacity to develop, collect, disseminate, use, interpret data nationally and regionally.
Download Event 4 output: Data Collection Mechanisms (English) (French)
Download Event 4 output: Reducing Data Fragmentation (English) (French)