Local Host Communities’ Responses to Refugees

Abstract

Kenyans and Tanzanians who resided in refugee-hosting communities, like other segments of the population, were affected by the economic changes brought forth by SAPs during the 1990s. While most regions throughout both countries grappled with a decline in living standards as a result of structural adjustment, Kenyans and Tanzanians who lived in areas that hosted refugees often faced new challenges as refugees competed with them for scare resources, fragile infrastructure was endangered, and new economic dynamics developed as a result of assistance provided by the international community, refugee labor, and businesses. Moreover, refugee-hosting communities bore the brunt of the fallout from regional conflicts and instability in the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa regions that was one of the factors that undergirded a change in refugee policies for both governments. At the same time, the transition to democratic rule allowed issues concerning human rights, citizenship, democracy, and the relationship between the state and civil society to be openly discussed among all citizens.