The socio-economic impact of Covid-19 on refugees and host community’s livelihoods in south western Uganda: a case of Nakivale refugee settlement.
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Date
2024
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kabale University
Abstract
This study examined the way the imposition of total lockdown during the COVID-19 epidemic affected the socioeconomic livelihoods of refugees and host communities at the Nakivale refugee settlement in South Western Uganda. This study worked towards answering the following questions; to what extent did COVID-19 affect refugees and the host community’s livelihood status at the Nakivale refugee settlement?; how did COVID-19 affect the operations of government and other humanitarian stakeholders at the Nakivale refugee settlement and how did they deal with such an impact?; what alternative policy approaches were available to guide the government and other actors in dealing with the socioeconomic livelihoods of refugees in the pandemic events? By using a cross-sectional design with a qualitative approach, the study used in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and participatory mapping to explore the research questions. The study findings revealed that the imposition of country-wide lockdowns affected the operations of all stakeholders which in turn also affected the socioeconomic livelihoods of refugees and host communities. It was thus recommended that in future epidemic events, the government as the overall overseer of refugee situations in tandem with humanitarian agencies, would need to consider attending to the plight of refugees in totality with its response to the general citizenry.
Description
Keywords
Covid-19, Socio-economic Livelihoods, Refugees and Host Communities, Nakivale Refugee Settlement
Citation
Mucungunzi, Abel; Mugisha, Abbasa; Ahabwe, Macklean (2024). The socio-economic impact of Covid-19 on refugees and host community’s livelihoods in south western Uganda: a case of Nakivale refugee settlement. Kabale: Kabale University.