1 - 10 of 10
Number of results to display per page
Search Results
2. For-Profit Humanitarians: IKEA's Partnership with the Jordan River Foundation
- Author:
- Ammar A. Malik, Hamutal Bernstein, Edward Mohr, and Yasemin Irvin-Erickson
- Publication Date:
- 09-2018
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- As the Syrian refugee crisis enters its eighth year, leveraging the private sector’s financial capital and capacity for innovation has emerged as an attractive solution to protracted displacement. But little evidence exists on the feasibility and effectiveness of this approach. This case study highlights a unique type of private-sector engagement in which mainstream business interests align with the needs of refugees and host communities. The IKEA–Jordan River Foundation (JRF) partnership demonstrates how diverse stakeholders can identify synergies, overcome legal and practical barriers, and sustain collaborations through effective management structures.
- Topic:
- Humanitarian Aid, Refugees, Business, Displacement, and Private Sector
- Political Geography:
- Middle East, Syria, and Jordan
3. High-Tech Humanitarians: Airtel Uganda’s Partnership with DanChurchAid
- Author:
- Patrick Meagher, Ammar A. Malik, Edward Mohr, and Yasemin Irvin-Erickson
- Publication Date:
- 10-2018
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- The world is in the midst of an unprecedented refugee crisis, and Uganda’s response to the influx of asylum-seekers from South-Sudan is considered successful and is therefore a valuable target for study and replication. Uganda accepts refugees regardless of point of origin and gives them the rights of freedom of movement and the opportunity to seek employment. This case study examines the official government and humanitarian agency response to increased refugee numbers, both in terms of policies and resources. It also focuses on telecommunication access and humanitarian cash transfers, and it analyzes the partnership between Danish Church Aid and Airtel Uganda.
- Topic:
- Government, Humanitarian Aid, Science and Technology, Refugee Issues, Immigrants, International Development, and Asylum
- Political Geography:
- Uganda, Africa, and South Sudan
4. Private-Sector Humanitarians? New Approaches in the Global Refugee Response
- Author:
- Ammar A. Malik, Edward Mohr, and Yasemin Irvin-Erickson
- Publication Date:
- 10-2018
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- With the global displaced population exceeding 68 million, the global humanitarian response system is under unprecedented stress. With widening funding gaps and no resolution in sight, new solutions are needed to address the needs of over 68 million displaced people worldwide. The private sector’s innovative and financial capacity is emerging as one such avenue, resulting in dozens of partnerships with local and international nonprofits. Depending on local policy environments, such working arrangements create both opportunities and risks for partners and hosts. This report is an attempt to learn lessons from existing experiences and offer insights on what works under given circumstances. Through desk research on existing partnerships, semistructured interviews with key stakeholders, site visits with partners in Jordan and Uganda, expert roundtables, and public discussions, we gather insights on both conceptual and practical aspects of partnerships benefiting refugees. We introduce a conceptual framework on the variety of options available to partners and offer recommendations for organizing win-win partnerships in the future.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Immigration, Refugees, International Development, Displacement, and Private Sector
- Political Geography:
- Uganda, Africa, Middle East, and Jordan
5. Displacement and Disconnection? Exploring the Role of Social Networks in the Livelihoods of Refugees in Gaziantep, Nairobi, and Peshawar
- Author:
- Loren Landau, Kabiri Bule, Ammar A. Malik, Caroline Wanjiku-Kihato, Yasemin Irvin-Erickson, Benjamin Edwards, and Edward Mohr
- Publication Date:
- 06-2017
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- Building on original quantitative and qualitative fieldwork in three refugee hosting cities – Nairobi, Gaziantep, and Peshawar—this study explores the role of social networks in furthering or hampering displaced persons’ ability to achieve self-reliance. Experiences are diverse, but several general findings emerge: (1) Group membership is remarkably low; (2) Social networks are an invaluable asset for many but are either unavailable or a hindrance for others; (3) The in-group networks that initially offer protection become less effective in the long-term; and (4) Economic security is closely depending on people’s ability to forge connections beyond co-nationals.
- Topic:
- Immigration, Governance, International Development, Urban, and Cities
- Political Geography:
- Pakistan, Kenya, Africa, South Asia, Turkey, Middle East, Nairobi, Gaziantep, and Peshawar
6. Mapping the Structure of Well-Being and Social Networks of Refugees
- Author:
- Ammar A. Malik, Edward Mohr, Yasemin Irvin-Erickson, Loren Landau, Caroline Wanjiku-Kihato, and Benjamin Edwards
- Publication Date:
- 06-2017
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- Despite strong ethnic, linguistic and religious similarities with host communities, the presence of Afghan refugees since the 1970s has fundamentally altered Peshawar’s social fabric. Using an original household survey, we explore the structures and forms of refugees’ social networks and their relationship with economic well-being. We find that refugees maintain networks both within refugee and host communities, gaining critical help in finding jobs and housing, besides financial and emotional support. We recommend strengthening refugees’ capacity to self-organize via community-based interventions and clarifying the future of their legal status in Pakistan.
- Topic:
- Immigration, Refugees, International Development, Displacement, and Cities
- Political Geography:
- Pakistan, Afghanistan, South Asia, and Peshawar
7. Dynamic Cities? The Role of Urban Local Governments in Improving Urban Service Delivery Performance in Africa and Asia
- Author:
- Jamie Boex, Ammar A. Malik, Devanne Brookins, and Ben Edwards
- Publication Date:
- 07-2016
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- Cities are engines of economic growth that provide spaces for social transformation and political inclusion. Their ability to deliver widely accessible and efficiently functioning public services drives productivity and sustains development. We design and apply an assessment framework to 42 cities in 14 African and Asian countries to better understand the functional, administrative, and political dimensions determining the quality and coverage of water, sanitation, and solid waste collection services. We find that urban local governments are constrained in their authority and discretion to deliver basic public services. Reforming intergovernmental institutional structures to better match responsibilities is essential for realizing cities’ full economic potential.
- Topic:
- Government, Water, Governance, International Development, Economic Growth, Urban, Sanitation, Services, and Cities
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Asia, and Global Focus
8. Women’s Economic Empowerment: A Review of Evidence on Enablers and Barriers
- Author:
- H. Elizabeth Peters, Nan Marie Astone, Ammar A. Malik, Fenohasina Rakotondrazaka Maret, and Caroline Heller
- Publication Date:
- 10-2016
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- Besides human rights protection and social welfare improvement, fostering female participation in the economy can stimulate growth with human capital accumulation and enhance the competitiveness of businesses. But women face many barriers to participating in the labor market, particularly in high productivity sectors, due to limited investments in education, time burdens from care responsibilities, legal prohibitions to land ownership, and sexual harassment and violence. We find evidence that improving access to infrastructure and public services, reforms in inheritance laws, family friendly workplace policies, and reduction in levels of violence can significantly improve women’s economic empowerment.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Labor Issues, Women, International Development, Economic Growth, and Cities
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
9. Women in Pakistan's Urban Informal Economy
- Author:
- Ammar A. Malik, Hadia Majid, Husnain Fateh, and Iromi Perera
- Publication Date:
- 01-2016
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- In rapidly urbanizing developing countries, the prevalence large-scale informality within urban economies increases social vulnerabilities, stifles worker productivity and dampens regional economic growth. With the prospect of better jobs attracting millions into cities each year, rising urban poverty levels are encouraging international nonprofits to allocate greater resources toward urban programs. Our fieldwork in Pakistan reveals that above all else, urban informal workers require improvements in public service delivery, skillset development and collective bargaining capacity. We propose implementing future urban programs through an iterative learning, adaptation and implementation approach allowing nonprofits to leverage greater impact from finite resources.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Labor Issues, Women, Income Inequality, International Development, Economic Growth, Family, and Cities
- Political Geography:
- Pakistan and South Asia
10. Decentralized Local Health Services in Tanzania: Are Health Resources Reaching Primary Health Facilities, or Are They Getting Stuck at the District Level?
- Author:
- Jameson Boex, Luke Fuller, and Ammar A. Malik
- Publication Date:
- 04-2015
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Urban Institute
- Abstract:
- This study analyzes local health finances in Tanzania by considering the extent to which public health resources in Tanzania flow from the district government level to primary health facilities, or whether these resources get stuck at the district level. Our analysis of health expenditures in six rural Local Government Authorities suggests that less than half of local health funding reaches the front-line dispensaries that provide the vast majority of local health services. The structure of the local health system appears to favor top-down interventions and control, rather than empowering local facilities to improve local health outcomes.
- Topic:
- Health, Health Care Policy, International Development, and Cities
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Tanzania