Africa/Global: Integrating refugees locally could be a durable solution

Soon after independence many African countries took in large numbers of refugees, provided them with land, helped them to become self-reliant and, in some cases, to attain a high degree of economic, social and political integration. Today, however, there are fewer opportunities for that approach. Africa’s refugees generally find themselves confined to camps or designated zones where they are discouraged from becoming self-reliant. Often they are put under pressure to go back to their own country, regardless of whether or not conditions in their country of origin are unsafe or unstable.