Ethiopia’s House of People’s Representatives adopted significant revisions in the existing refugee law on Thursday last week (17 January), giving the country what UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, described as “one of the most progressive refugee policies in Africa”. The new law allows refugees to obtain work permits, access education and health services, obtain drivers’ licenses, legally register life events such as births and marriages and opens up access to national financial services, such as banking. The passing of the law came only a few weeks after the UN General Assembly agreed to the Global Compact on Refugees (December 17) which focuses on ensuring refugees have the opportunity to be self-reliant and can contribute to local economies in a way that can also benefit their hosts.
In a press statement, the UNHCR said: “The passage of this historic law represents a significant milestone in Ethiopia’s long history of welcoming and hosting refugees from across the region for decades,” adding, “By allowing refugees the opportunity to be better integrated into society, Ethiopia is not only upholding its international refugee law obligations, but is serving as a model for other refugee hosting nations around the world.” The UNHCR said the law would help refugees feel included and that they could contribute to society. Ethiopia’s Administration for Refugee and Returnee Affairs said it strongly believed that the new law would enhance the lives of refugees and host communities.
The new law also supports the “The Jobs Compact”, a $500 million program funded by the World Bank, DFID, the European Investment Bank and the EU, to create 100,000 jobs, in support of Ethiopia’s pledge to provide work for refugees within the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework which it launched in November 2017. The program, which also allows for the improvement of the regulatory framework for refugees, will support sustainable industrialization, and provide employment and jobs for Ethiopians and refugees. 30% of the jobs will be allocated to refugees.
Ethiopia currently hosts over 900,000 refugees, Africa’s second largest refugee population after Uganda, primarily from neighbouring South Sudan, Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea, as well as smaller numbers of refugees from Yemen and Syria.
