Transforming Uganda’s refugee response: Accelerated self-reliance

Agricultural practices in Uganda remain central to promoting refugee self-reliance, supporting food security, and fostering resilience within refugee-hosting communities. Photo:

Driving through the dusty roads of Yumbe District in north‑western Uganda and into Bidibidi Refugee Settlement is a reminder that Uganda’s refugee response has always been about people, their resilience, aspirations, and contributions. Across refugee‑hosting districts, communities are navigating a reality that is no longer temporary but structural. What we observed on the ground was not only vulnerability, but determination and a system ready for its next phase.

We met Doreen Tabu, a 38‑year‑old refugee from South Sudan who has lived in Bidibidi for eight years and supports ten dependents. Rather than relying solely on assistance, she farms a small plot of land. Her livelihood, however, is increasingly threatened by climate shocks and crop theft. Doreen’s experience reflects a broader truth: displacement in Uganda is a long‑term demographic and economic reality. Many refugees are already building lives and contributing to local economies.

Uganda today hosts nearly two million refugees, about 5% of its population across 12 settlements. The country is rightly recognized for its progressive refugee policy, which allows freedom of movement, access to work, and conditional use of land. Since the 2016 Solidarity Summit, development partners have invested more than $2 billion in support of Uganda’s refugee response of which $1 billion is from the World Bank. This financing is helping expand access to education, health services, infrastructure, energy, water, and livelihoods in refugee‑hosting areas.

These investments have delivered tangible gains. Yet conversations with communities and local leaders highlighted a shared message: the next phase must focus on reducing needs by accelerating self‑reliance. This requires a deliberate shift from a predominantly humanitarian approach to a development‑oriented one, anchored in national systems and government leadership.

During our visits, local officials and community members consistently emphasized that while access to basic services—that act as pathways to sustainable livelihoods—have improved, supporting this shift means expanding access to finance, markets, and jobs for refugees and host communities alike, while crowding in private‑sector engagement. Development partners can play a catalytic role by aligning investments with government priorities and reducing barriers that may prevent refugees from fully participating in local economies.

In Terego District, local authorities explained that registering an average of 1,500 new refugee arrivals each month is manageable; the greater challenge lies in sustaining health and education services under growing pressure. It is also important to align those services with national standards. Investments in healthcare have helped expand access to essential services, including reproductive health and gender‑based violence support.

Integrating refugee-serving schools and health facilities into government systems through the Uganda Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers Program (UgIFT) is a critical step towards sustainability. A comprehensive integration agenda will require commitment, coordination, and financing under Government of Uganda leadership.

The potential of a development‑led approach is already visible. In Koboko District, we met Mamu Mugera, a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo who chose to move beyond settlement‑based assistance and enter the local economy. With modest start‑up capital accessed through a women’s refugee association, she built a growing fish‑trading business and now supports ten dependents. Her experience illustrates how access, stability, and basic capital can enable refugees to transfer skills and quickly become contributors.

To make such outcomes the norm rather than the exception, two shifts are essential. First, refugees need expanded pathways beyond settlements and into the wider economy. Second, remaining barriers to employment and enterprise must be eased so refugees can fully use their skills. Uganda’s settlement model already provides a strong foundation of freedom; development partners can support the next step by investing in infrastructure and supporting reforms that enable mobility, trade, and job creation.

Strategic infrastructure investments, such as the Koboko–Yumbe–Moyo road corridor, supported by the World Bank, can unlock regional trade, improve access to markets and services, and strengthen economic linkages that benefit both refugees and host communities. Such investments demonstrate how development solutions can address displacement while supporting broader national growth.

The humanitarian model has saved lives. The development approach builds futures. By supporting government leadership, strengthening national systems, and removing barriers to economic participation, partners can help ensure that refugees and host communities access services, opportunities, and dignity. Building skills and assets today also lays the foundation for sustainable futures—whether refugees remain in Uganda or, if and when conditions allow, return home with greater resilience. Uganda’s experience shows what is possible when inclusion and self‑reliance are placed at the center of the response.