Refugees in the Minawao camp: Status and erosion of social assistance in the face of the SDGs

Marie Rosette Magne, Cyprien Coffi Aholou

Article ID: 8706
Vol 8, Issue 11, 2024

VIEWS - 893 (Abstract)

Abstract


This article analyses the effectiveness of humanitarian assistance in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Minawao refugee camp in Cameroon, focusing on the social pillar of sustainable humanitarian. Established in 2013 to accommodate Nigerians fleeing the violence of Boko Haram, the camp now faces growing challenges related to the sustainability of assistance. Based on a mixed methodological approach, the analysis draws on data collected from humanitarian operators, refugees and the host community. The data was collected using tools such as participant observation, individual and group interviews, questionnaire surveys, mapping, documentary review, etc. Although essential infrastructure has been put in place, the study reveals that minimum humanitarian standards are not being met in several key sectors: food security, education, sanitation, shelter provision and Non Foods Items (NFIs). The lack of financial resources, combined with insufficient involvement by the Cameroonian government, has led to a gradual erosion of social protection for refugees. Maintaining assistance on a temporary basis compromises the integration of the SDGs into humanitarian operations. The article highlights the need for a forward-looking approach by humanitarian agencies, coordination between stakeholders and the involvement of new partners, including refugees, to guarantee their well-being and the achievement of the SDGs.


Keywords


sustainable humanitarian; refugees; SDGs; social assistance; Minawao

Full Text:

PDF


References


Aburamadan, R., Trillo, C., & Makore, B. C. N. (2020). Designing refugees’ camps: Temporary emergency solutions, or contemporary paradigms of incomplete urban citizenship? Insights from Al Za’atari. City, Territory and Architecture, 7(1), 12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40410-020-00120-z Albadra, D., Elamin, Z., Adeyeye, K., et al. (2021). Participatory design in refugee camps: Comparison of different methods and visualization tools. Building Research & Information, 49(2), 248‑264. https://doi.org/10.1080/09613218.2020.1740578 Al-Husban, M., & Adams, C. (2016). Sustainable Refugee Migration: A Rethink towards a Positive Capability Approach. Sustainability, 8(5), 451. https://doi.org/10.3390/su8050451 Association Sphère. (2018). The Sphere Handbook: The Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response (fourth) (French). Available online: https://spherestandards.org/fr/manuel-2018/ (accessed on 2 June 2023). Audet, F. (2016). Humanitarianism as a research topic for development studies. Introduction to the thematic section (French). Canadian Journal of Development Studies/Revue Canadienne d’études Du Développement, 37(3), 337‑340. https://doi.org/10.1080/02255189.2016.1167015 Awadari, A. C. (2020). Donor fatigue phenomenon: Trend and circumvention in Northern Ghana. International Journal of Financial, Accounting, and Management, 1(4). https://doi.org/10.35912/ijfam.v1i4.148 Babin, R. (2017). Societal modernisation as a progressive application of sustainable development. In: The issues and challenges of sustainable development: Understanding, deciding, acting. Presses de l’Université Laval. Barakat, S., & Milton, S. (2020). Localisation Across the Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus. Journal of Peacebuilding & Development, 15(2), 147‑163. https://doi.org/10.1177/1542316620922805 Besiou, M., Pedraza‐Martinez, A. J., & Van Wassenhove, L. N. (2021). Humanitarian Operations and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Production and Operations Management, 30(12), 4343‑4355. https://doi.org/10.1111/poms.13579 Bouagga, Y. (2019). Refugee camps and encampments. Historians and geographers (French). Association des professeurs d’histoire et de géographie, Dossier: Migrations, 47‑52. https://doi.org/halshs-02364534 Byler, R., Gelaw, F., & Khoshnood, K. (2015). Beyond the tent: Considerations for altering the standard refugee camp design for improved health outcomes. In: Proceeding of the 2015 IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC). pp. 123‑128. https://doi.org/10.1109/GHTC.2015.7343964 Cassam-Chenaï, F. (2020). Humanitarian aid in a globalised world. Discourses on aid and the issues at stake in the ‘humanitarian/development/peace and security’ triptych in the Sahel: building a success story (French)? FMSH, WP-2020-144, 25. https://doi.org/halshs-02612497 Daher, E., Kubicki, S., & Halin, G. (2015). A Parametric Process for Shelters and Refugees’ Camps Design. In: Proceedings of the 33th International Conference on Education and Research in Computer Aided Architectural Design in Europe (ECAADe), 2, 541–548. https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.ecaade.2015.2.541 de Montclos, M. A. P. (2012). Boko Haram, Terrorism, and Islamism in Nigeria: A Religious Uprising, a Political Contest, or a Social Protest (French)? Questions de recherche/Research Questions, Centre d’études et de recherches internationales (CERI-Sciences Po/CNRS), 40, 33. Development initiatives. (2023). Global Humanitarian Assistance Report 2023. Development initiatives. Dick, S. (2003). Changing the Equation: Refugees as Valuable Resources Rather than Helpless Victims. Political Science, Sociology, 18, 19‑29. Government of Cameroon. (2017). Tripartite agreement for the voluntary repatriation of Nigerian refugees living in Cameroon (French). Available online: https://reliefweb.int/report/cameroon/accord-tripartite-pour-le-rapatriement-librement-consenti-des-r-fugi-s-nig-rians (accessed on 2 June 2023). Hart, J., Paszkiewicz, N., & Albadra, D. (2018). Shelter as Home? Syrian Homemaking in Jordanian Refugee Camps. Human Organization, 77(4), 371‑380. https://doi.org/10.17730/0018-7259.77.4.371 HCR. (2015). Minawao-June 2015 camp profile [Monthly report] (French). UNHCR. HCR. (2017). Minawao-January 2017 camp profile [Monthly report] (French). HCR. HCR. (2024a). Global Report 2023. Available online: https://reporting.unhcr.org/global-report-2023 (accessed on 2 June 2023). HCR. (2024b). Minawao camp profile-December 2023 [Monthly report]. HCR. Higazi, A., & Brisset-Foucault, F. (2013). The origins and transformation of the Boko Haram insurgency in northern Nigeria (French). Politique Africaine, 130(2), 137–164. https://doi.org/10.3917/polaf.130.0137 Hövelmann, S. (2020). TRIPLE NEXUS to go: Humanitarian topics explained. Centre for Humanitarian Action CHA, 6. Howe, P. (2019). The triple nexus: A potential approach to supporting the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals? World Development, 124, 104629. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2019.104629 Kiani, M. M., Khanjankhani, K., Takbiri, A., et al. (2021). Refugees and Sustainable Health Development in Iran. Archives of Iranian Medicine, 24(1), 27‑34. https://doi.org/10.34172/aim.2021.05 Majewski, R. I. (2022). Greening Humanitarian Aid—A case study on environmental mainstreaming in the Minawao Refugee Camp in Cameroon. Available online: http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9086658 (accessed on 2 June 2023). Matsumoto, M., Wimer, G., & Sethi, A. (2019). Health needs of refugees: Port of arrival versus permanent camp settings. Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal, 25(5), 306‑314. https://doi.org/10.26719/2019.25.5.297 Moore, B. (2017). Refugee settlement and sustainable planning (French). In: Shelter on the move. Centre d’études sur les réfugiés de l’Université d’Oxford. Moreno-Serna, J., Sánchez-Chaparro, T., Stott, L., et al. (2021). Feedback Loops and Facilitation: Catalyzing Transformational Multi-Stakeholder Refugee Response Partnerships. Sustainability, 13(21), 11705. https://doi.org/10.3390/su132111705 Nations Unies. (2015). Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 25 September 2015. Transforming our world: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (French). Available online: https://www.un.org/fr/conferences/environment/newyork2015 (accessed on 2 June 2023). Pérouse de Montclos, M. A. (2017). Nigeria, Boko Haram and the migration crisis (French). Outre-Terre, 53(4), 174‑189. https://doi.org/10.3917/oute1.053.0174 Poinsot, M., & Agier, M. (2009). The “humanitarian government”: Interview by Marie Poinsot with Michel Agier (French). Hommes & migrations, 1279, 104‑113. https://doi.org/10.4000/hommesmigrations.329 Sauvé, L. (2007). The equivocation of sustainable development (French). Chemin de Traverse, 4, 31‑47. Seifert, L., Kunz, N., & Gold, S. (2023). Sustainable innovations for humanitarian operations in refugee camps. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 43(10), 1554‑1586. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPM-05-2022-0302 Steinke, A. (2022). Mali’s Triple Nexus Coordination, security and blurred lines (French). Centre for Humanitarian Action. Turner, V., Kigali, W., & Bourgois, X. (2019). After Boko Haram attacks, Nigerian refugees struggle to survive|HCR (French). HCR site international. UNCT Cameroon. (2022). The road to Humanitarian Development Peace Collective outcomes in Cameroon—Analytical & Strategic frameworks. OCHA. Van Der Helm, A. W. C., Bhai, A., Coloni, F., et al. (2017). Developing water and sanitation services in refugee settings from emergency to sustainability—the case of Zaatari Camp in Jordan. Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, 7(3), 521‑527. https://doi.org/10.2166/washdev.2017.107 Vincent, N. E. J., Funteh, B., Henri, M. M., et al. (2017). The Boko Haram conflict in Cameroon: Why is peace dragging on (French)? Séries FES sur la Paix et la Sécurité en Afrique n, 21, 36. Wardeh, M., & Marques, R. C. (2021a). Sustainability in Refugee Camps: A Comparison of the Two Largest Refugee Camps in the World. Journal of Refugee Studies, 34(3), 2740‑2774. https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/feaa141 Wardeh, M., & Marques, R. C. (2021b). Sustainability in Refugee Camps: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sustainability, 13(14), 7686. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13147686 Wardeh, M., & Marques, R. C. (2023). Progress on sustainable development goal 6 in refugee camps in the Middle East: A comparative study. Utilities Policy, 82, 101575. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jup.2023.101575 Zakir Hossain, A. N. M. (2021). Sustainable Development and Livelihoods of Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh: The Effects of COVID-19. International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning, 16(6), 1141‑1152. https://doi.org/10.18280/ijsdp.160615



DOI: https://doi.org/10.24294/jipd.v8i11.8706

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2024 Marie Rosette Magne, Cyprien Coffi Aholou

License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.