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1. Background and Rationale
Displaced people are often affected by and engaged in the process of urbanization. Increasingly, refugees, returnees, and internally displaced persons (IDPs) are to be found not in camps or among host communities in rural areas, but in the towns and cities of developing and middle-income countries. The arrival and long-term settlement of displaced populations in urban areas needs to be better anticipated, understood, and planned for, with a particular emphasis on the establishment of new partnerships.
Globally, returnees are increasingly going back to urban centers and most of the IDPs living in protracted displacement in urban areas will not return to their rural areas of origin. Displacement in urban contexts is often forgotten and confused with urban poor.
The launch of the Global Alliance for Urban Crises at the World Humanitarian Summit in May 2016 demonstrates a shift in mind-set amongst humanitarian agencies and development actors, who recognize the need to increasingly respond in urban areas. It is incumbent upon international agencies, hosting states and other stakeholders to fully recognize that urban displacement is now the norm and to ensure that new funding, policies and operational approaches are appropriately designed and implemented according to where the majority of the forcibly displaced are located. There is need for international, national and local actors to work together to ensure urban centers are able to absorb displaced populations in ways that are dignified, foster self-reliance and which address the needs of both displaced populations and the host communities. This requires managing protracted and forced displacement as both a humanitarian and development issue, moving from humanitarian responses designed solely to address short-term need to ones that also contribute to longer-term sustainable urban development.
Refugees and IDPs chose to move or return to urban areas in search of better access to services and livelihood opportunities. However, they are often vulnerable in urban contexts, with increased restrictions on their rights – particularly on the right to work, and in some cases also on their freedom of movement. Often times, existing policies prevent them from working legally, and stigma may prevent them from accessing adequate housing. Where the right to work is restricted, displaced people are more likely to enter the informal workforce, which can lead to downwards pressure on wages. For all new arrivals in a town or city, vulnerabilities may be exacerbated by language barriers, lack of familiarity with local norms and customs, social isolation and limited awareness of their rights, entitlements or where to seek help. In general, the urban displaced face a range of legal restrictions and suffer from harassment and insecurity.
Such trends generate new challenges and opportunities for governments, humanitarian and development actors to take the necessary steps to ensure appropriate partnerships and approaches that support towns, cities and host communities, and the displaced populations within them. This highlights the increased need to better understand displacement within an urban context and its unique challenges while calling for inclusive models of urbanization that anticipate and incorporate population movements, and build the capacities of stakeholders for collective response.
2. Consultancy objective
Building on existing and ongoing researches and solutions analysis undertaken in the region, the Regional Durable Solutions Secretariat seeks to commission a comparative study to explore displacement in the urban environments and the implications and challenges this poses for humanitarian and development response and planning. The study will focus specifically on refugees in Uganda (Kampala), Kenya (Nairobi) and IDPs in Somalia (Baidoa and Mogadishu). The comparative analysis will generate evidence and recommendations to enable ReDSS members, and other stakeholders to improve solutions oriented programing and policies in urban contexts.
3. Specific objectives
· Provide an in depth analysis of the key challenges and opportunities to inform multi-sectoral rights and needs based programing and planning for various partners in urban contexts
· Provide a political economy analysis and specific recommendations on the environment needed to support inclusive access to services and self-reliance programing and policies (programing gaps and priorities, key actors, good practices, lessons learnt, funding opportunities…)
· Provide an institutional mapping and specific recommendations on how to improve early solutions coordination in the three urban contexts
· Identify knowledge gaps and issues where further research is needed to establish a common learning agenda distinguishing medium and long term needs (longitudinal survey, etc.)
4. See below key questions to inform context and analysis:
Solutions programing (environmental, societal, political, cultural and economic considerations)
· What are the current response actions/strategies/initiatives and how do they address prospects for urban solutions to date?
· How to better understand the complex integration to markets- formal and informal livelihoods opportunities, how to tap into opportunities while addressing bottlenecks
· What is the current use of social innovation, modern technology and communication in supporting solutions?
· What financial institution branches are available to cater for both host and refugees? (banks, microfinance, agents of MFIs or banks)
· How to best collectively support and invest in urban solutions planning and programing at all levels? What can be done differently?
· How to increase absorption capacity and support to urban preparedness (basic service provision such as Rental and housing systems, health care, education)
· What are the key barriers and constraints to support urban solutions programming?
· I think we need a bullet in this list on the implications for protection of the displaced in urban settings
Political economy and institutional mapping
· How to better understand political context and incentive structures within which national urban policies are made? This will provide more evidence in support of urban solutions planning and the benefit of displaced people economic empowerment for host communities and countries.
· What are the challenges and opportunities with regard to urban solutions coordination? What kinds of coordination structures are or should be in place?
· What funding mechanisms and funding sources are in place or required to encourage urban solutions planning and programming?
· What is or should be the role of humanitarian and development actors, governments and local authorities in urban solutions planning and programing and to address displacement as a development issue with humanitarian components?
· What is the place of urban solutions programming in regional and global processes such as the CRRF, the IGAD Nairobi Plan etc?
· What are the economic impacts of hosting refugees (e.g labour market impacts; fiscal effects; economic outputs; competition)?
Displacement affected communities’ engagement (refugee economies, social cohesion…)
· What are the interactions between the different categories of people in urban contexts (IDPs, refugees, returnees, urban poor) and how does the categorization impact on urban solutions planning?
· What are the main risks facing urban displaced and how to address them
· What is the perception and engagement of host communities in solutions planning?
· What are the causes/ primary drivers of social fragmentation and tensions between the different groups? What can be done to enhance social cohesion and local integration?
· What is or should be the role of the displaced host communities, community-based mechanisms and community base organizations (CBO)?
· What economic interactions occur between refugees and host communities? What are potential market linkages between the two communities (including main economic activities, trade routes, economic constraints and comparative advantages?
· What natural resources are used by the host communities and refugees?
· Perception and public attitudes amongst Ethiopians towards refugees
· What are the social/political impacts of hosting refugees (e.g. impacts on social cohesion, community tensions, diversity, new ideas/norms/values, and pluralism)?
5. The methodology will include:
· A people centered approach so data and evidence will be collected and analyzed together with displacement affected communities
· A very participatory and consensus building approach
· Key Informant Interviews with government officials at national and local levels, development and humanitarian actors including national and local organizations, policy makers, donors, private sector, CSOs, faith based organizations, academia etc. to collect existing data and information (Minimum 40 interviews/ participants consulted)
· Field visits and Focus Group Discussions with urban displacement affected populations (both refugees and host communities) to analyse social economic cohesion and local level opportunities (including market opportunities) and constraints.
· 3 validation workshops with key stakeholders to review and agree on the overall findings & analysis to inform collective planning, programing, and policy for urban based displacement affected communities
6. Expected deliverables[1]:
· Inception Report (with power point presentation) outlining the consultant’s understanding of the TOR, methodology, ethical considerations[2], outline, work-plan and a list individuals and/or types of organizations the consultant will be interviewing for presentation to the study’s core group.
· Draft Solutions framework analysis to inform multi-sectoral rights and needs based plans/ programs (40 pages maximum without annexes) including:
o Table of contents, glossary of key terms, list of acronyms,
o An executive summary (maximum 3 pages), introduction highlighting the objectives of the study, the rationale, methodology used, scope and limitations, theory of change
o Outline of literature review and country context analyses including detailed response to the key questions highlighted above
o An overview of the collective efforts of all involved stakeholders towards durable solutions which can support agencies/organizations in incorporating durable solutions further in their individual programming strategies
o A baseline understanding from which stakeholders may use to understand the progress of durable solutions over time
o Conclusions, recommendations and way forward
o Annexes including but not limited to list of key interviews, field visits, bibliography, documents reviewed, etc.
o A short Power Point presentation highlighting the key questions, methodology, key findings and recommendations (15 slides maximum)
o Displacement affected communities’ quotes and perceptions to highlight community voices
o Summary notes from focus group discussions and key informants interviews
o 3 Validation workshops with key stakeholders to review and agree on the overall findings and analysis to inform collective solutions planning, programing and policy for urban displacement affected communities
o A final revised report based on inputs received from key stakeholders and technical group composed of ReDSS secretariat and technical staff
7. Management and timeframe
The consultant will report to ReDSS Coordinator. The study will be conducted in a period of 60 consultancy days. The work of the consultant will be guided by a technical group composed of ReDSS members’ technical staff.
The field work components must be complete by 31st December 2017. The final report and validation workshops must be completed no later than 26th January 2018.
8. ReDSS Responsibility
DRC will provide the following to the lead consultant:
Organise the consultants’ travel to and from agreed upon locations;
Provide relevant background information, and contact numbers for relevant people;
Provide transportation of the consultant as mutually agreed between DRC and the consultant;
Provide for accommodation for the consultant in the field;
The consultant will receive full reimbursement for monies spent on meals and communication while in the field, upon satisfactory completion of the assignment and submission of original receipts
The terms and conditions of service will follow DRC terms of consultancies. Payment will be done according to the finance procedures of DRC/DDG.
9. Expected profile of consultant
· Advanced University degree in social studies, political science, international relations or relevant field of study
· Minimum 7 years’ proven experience in conducting similar assignments.
· Demonstrable experience related to forced migration and durable solutions with programming experience an added advantage
· Strong knowledge of the region and the socio-economic and political dynamics affecting it; more specifically on displacement trends within the Horn of Africa region
· Strong analytical and writing skills with proven experience in producing high quality research with ability to present complex information in a simple and accessible manner
· Fluency in written and spoken English
10. Terms and conditions
The consultant should be willing to begin early November and conduct field visit within agreed upon locations in the three countries. The consultant may have his/her own team to work with who will entirely be under the jurisdiction of the consultant and at no time will ReDSS be held responsible for them
11.General
Commitments: DRC/DDG has a Humanitarian Accountability Framework, outlining its global accountability committments. All staff are required to contribute to the achievement of this framework (http://www.DRC/DDG.dk/HAF.4265.0.html)
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