IRRI fights for the rights of displaced persons and people on the move more generally, through an integrated framework of
IRRI is currently implementing the SPACE project in Northern Uganda which seeks to strengthen safety, protection and peaceful coexistence for women and youth in the three refugee settlements of Palabek, Palorinya and Rhino. The project promotes solutions to existing challenges in accessing justice in both formal and informal justice systems.
IRRI is also piloting its signature iMOVE Africa project which seeks to shift the discourse and change narratives on migration in Africa and related issues, by providing Afrocentric perspectives that connect to the Pan Africanist ideals and agenda, leading to the harnessing of the dividends of Africa’s integration, regional citizenship and free movement arrangements, in order to foster economic growth and development, and ensure the protection of Africans on the move.
FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR When I was joining IRRI in the first quarter of 2019, I could not have imagined the dynamism and shifts we would experience by the end of 2019. We changed. Simply put. At the milestone of 15 years, we determined that we needed to re- strategise and rethink IRRI, and what…
#BreakTheBias by giving equal value and recognition to women’s voice and spaces. The International Refugee Rights Initiative (IRRI) is committed to equality and treating people fairly. We believe in non-discrimination and to levelling the playing field. We at IRRI, are cognisant of our duty to respond to intersectionalities within the communities we serve, ensuring cultural,…
(30 September 2020) The research took place in the provinces of Bujumbura, Cibitoke and Muyinga between 14 January and 20 April 2020, the start date of campaigns for presidential, legislative and municipal elections in Burundi. Research Topic: The Return Dynamics of Refugees and IDPs in the Provinces of Bujumbura, Cibitoke and Muyinga. The research focused…
A Study of Eritreans forced from Saudi Arabia to East Africa IRRI Policy Paper Series Forced Migration Gulf to Africa Sept 2020 Millions of the foreign nationals who live and work in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states hail from repressive or conflict-affected countries, and yet their situation rarely features in discussions about forced migration…
People seeking safety are trapped at borders across Eastern Africa due to COVID-19 measures A coalition of international, national, and refugee-led organizations in the Horn, East and Central Africa (HECA) have today called on governments in the region to reopen borders for asylum seekers. The organisations are calling on governments to put in place measures…
IRRI Press Statement on World Refugee Day 2020 20 June 2020 is World Refugee Day. This year’s theme is Everyone can make a difference. Every action counts. Refugees can and do make a difference in the host communities where they seek refuge, and their actions count. This is most evident globally, where we have seen…
Issue 112, May 2020 ISSN 2049-2650 Editorial Team: Nejla Sammakia, Christian Jorgensen, Cristina de Nicolás Izquierdo, Nicolas Parent, Taylor Brooks, Sirak Akalu Iyassu, Lucia Slot, Adam Severson, Nastassja White, Lena Ellen Becker, Muchengeti Hwacha, Saskia Llewellyn and Rosa da Costa. Chief Editor: Fiona McKinnon Web links are in blue. In this issue: Articles & Short…
Joint civil society statement Ahead of the African Union (AU) High-Level Dialogue on displacement taking place from 4-6 December in Uganda, 15 African and international NGOs call on African leaders and regional organisations to urge the government of Tanzania to stop pressuring 163,000 refugees and asylum seekers into returning to Burundi, where there are…
Be a part of our editorial team! The Rights in Exile Newsletter (formerly the Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter) is a free public resource for legal assistance providers, refugees, and others interested in refugee legal assistance. The newsletter is a monthly digital publication updating aspects of refugee legal aid so that legal aid providers can stay…
Issue 105 In this issue: Announcing the new and improved Rights in Exile newsletter! Articles & Short Pieces Digital litter: The downside of using technology to help refugees EOIR’s troubling new regulations Lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security says new asylum policy violates child immigrants’ rights UN rights experts urge more protection for LGBTI…
This video (watch below) is a summary of the findings in our report “Understanding conflict dynamics around refugee settlements in northern Uganda” launched recently in Kampala in August 2019. Between December 2018 and May 2019, the International Refugee Rights Initiative (IRRI) undertook a study in Adjumani, Arua and Lamwo districts in northern Uganda to understand…
Issue 104, July 2019 ISSN 2049-2650 Editorial Team: Catherine Tyson, Nejla Sammakia, Christian Jorgensen, Cristina de Nicolas, Nicolas Parent, Taylor Brooks, Olivia Bueno, Sirak Akalu Iyassu and Lucia Slot. Chief Editor: Fiona McKinnon. Web links are in blue. In this issue: Articles Refugees’ self-reliance: The dilemma of implementing the Global Compact on Refugees in Africa…
Issue 100, March 2019 ISSN 2049-2650 Editorial Team: Catherine Tyson, Nejla Sammakia, Kavita Kapur, Christian Jorgensen, Cristina de Nicolas, Nicolas Parent, Taylor Brooks, Olivia Bueno, Sirak Akalu Iyassu and Lucia Slot. Chief Editor: Fiona McKinnon Web links are in blue. In this issue: Articles Rights in Exile: Documenting a movement Security and Immigration decree produces…
One of the slums in Kibuye, Kampala where urban refugees live. Picture extracted from video by scidevnet Contrary to public perception, the majority of refugees live in cities and towns rather than camps. In these urban spaces, some send their children to school, generate livelihoods and successfully negotiate their own way through exile. Others barely…
Issue 96, November 2018 ISSN 2049-2650 Editorial Team: Fiona McKinnon, Catherine Tyson, Nejla Sammakia, Mohamed ElSayeh, Kavita Kapur, Joshua Lowe, Christian Jorgensen, Cristina de Nicolas, Nicolas Parent, and Taylor Brooks. Chief Editor: Olivia Bueno Web links are in blue. In this issue: Articles APRRN statement: Suspend policy to end refugee status of Chin refugees from Myanmar…
Uganda’s refugee policy urgently needs an honest discussion, if sustainable solutions for both refugees and host communities are to be found, a new policy paper by International Refugee Rights Initiative (IRRI) reveals. The paper, entitled Uganda’s refugee policies: the history, the politics, the way forward puts the “Ugandan model” in its historical and political…
Sudan’s compliance with its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in the context of mixed migration from, and to Sudan 124th session of the Human Rights Committee – Review of Sudan’s State Party report Introduction This submission by the Centre for Human Rights Law, SOAS, University of London, the International…
Issue 95, September 2018 ISSN 2049-2650 Editorial Team: Catherine Tyson, Nejla Sammakia, Mohamed ElSayeh, Kavita Kapur, Joshua Lowe, Christian Jorgensen, Cristina de Nicolas, Nicolas Parent, and Taylor Brooks. Chief Editor: Themba Lewis Web links are in blue. ___________ In this issue: SPECIAL TRIBUTE: DR BARBARA HARRELL-BOND, OBE External tributes to Dr Barbara Harrell-Bond, OBE Statement:…
For many years, Rwandan refugees in Uganda have faced abuses, including arbitrary detention, forced return to Rwanda and attacks on their physical security, without any form of accountability. However, last Friday, 24 August, former Inspector-General of the Ugandan police, General Kale Kayihura, has been charged with aiding and abetting the kidnapping and repatriation of…
With words and actions, the Tanzanian is pressuring Burundian refugees to go home, putting them at greater risk of abuses.