Webinar Dialogue Series Part 1: Exploring the Pros and Cons of Refugee Self-Reliance

[@saleem.najjar]

Thank you everyone for the great webinar!

[@sarahking8194]

It's important to note that many non-refugees do not meet the definition of self-reliance either, especially in the countries which host the largest number of long-term refugees. So the aspirations of the RSRI are useful not only for refugees, but also for all disadvantaged / excluded / low-income members of society, and the initiative provides a goal for development as well as humanitarian organisations. Also, it's very obvious when reading the RSRI that the intention is always to use the findings from the surveys to lobby duty-bearers (mainly governments) to improve their service provision and ensure social an economic inclusion of ALL, to ensure all members of society have dignified lives. The initiative (and index) also clearly includes all types of employment - self- and wage- and not only small businesses, and it has a dozen dimensions of which income is only one. But the reality is that many (most?) refugees don't have the skills, qualifications, language, connections, etc, to get formal jobs in their host countries - where, as already stated, unemployment rates are already very high. No government is going to promote employment for foreigners (of any status, legal or illegal) over citizens; it's just not realistic to expect that to happen. Of course, the specific barriers that prevent refugees from accessing employment should be urgently addressed - alongside tackling the same barriers for vulnerable members of the host population. Therefore I don't find the criticisms of the RSRI shared here very helpful - when it's understood what the RSRI actually is and what it is trying to achieve, I don't hear any concrete, realistic alternatives or suggestions being presented. Good work, RSRI / Kelly / WRC - thank you and keep going!

[@saleem.najjar]

Thank you Sarah for the input, that's why it's so important to empower refugees to start their own business or startup.