national society and service structure, refugees were offered temporary protection in purpose-built encampments in proximity to the Kenyan border (Betts, Sterck, & Omata, 2018). The initial goal was to resettle refugees once conflict ceased, therefore employment and agricultural opportunities as well as access to government services were limited, freedom of movement restricted, and service delivery taken over by UNHCR and implementing partners.<sup>6</sup> However, with conflicts ongoing in the East Africa region, the refugee camps continue to persist and to grow. With some of the oldest parts of Kakuma and Dadaab complex being older than 30 years in 2021, encampments have turned from a temporary to a permanent solution.

Refugees continue to face legal hurdles that make them more vulnerable during socioeconomic shocks. First, refugees do not have the right to settle freely in Kenya nor to own land. Once registered with UNCHR in one of the camps, refugees are allotted a portion of land that contains a small shelter. The allocated land cannot be sold or purchased through official means, which poses an administrative hurdle in relocating to a different area or expanding agricultural production. Except for small plots that are allocated within Kalobeyei settlement, most allotted land is infertile and does not permit agricultural production (Betts, Omata, Rodgers, Sterck, & Stierna, 2018). Second, refugees are not allowed to leave the encampment unless a travel-permit is acquired in advance which requires an application process that can be lengthy. Income generation strategies that rely on mobility are therefore limited. In addition, refugees forfeit their right to food and cash assistance if relocating to an urban area where assistance from NGOs is very limited.

Third, refugees do not have the official right to work outside the camps, unless a work permit is obtained in advance for which a recommendation from a prospective employer must be accompanied by a letter from the RAS confirming refugee status leading to in practice permits being rarely issued (UNHCR & World Bank, 2020). This results in many refugees taking lowpaying jobs in the informal sector that are more prone to short-term contracts and layoffs without much protection during times of crises (Betts, Sterck, & Omata, 2018). As many refugees flee their country without much preparation, they frequently lack official documents such as birth certificates, IDs or schooling certificates, which are necessary to access many Kenyan services or signal one’s skill level to a prospective employer. Refugee entrepreneurs are allowed to open their own business inside the camps by applying for a business license to the local county government. However, the license needs to be renewed annually with charges depending on business size, effectively making it a ‘tax’ on economic activity (Betts, Sterck, & Omata, 2018).

Given the regulatory challenges, only a fraction of refugees in camps were employed before the pandemic. Results from socioeconomic surveys show that in 2019 and in 2018 only around 20 percent of refugees in Kakuma Camp and 39 percent of those in Kalobeyei Settlement were employed in any sort of economic activity. In contrast, more than 60 percent of Kenyans at the national level and in the county-level host community were employed over the same timeframe. Wage work is the most important type of employment for refugees in Kakuma with nearly 50 percent of the 18-64 year old population employed for wages, usually in the

> 6 While the refugee camps are jointly administered by the Refugees Affairs Secretariat (RAS) of the Government of Kenya and UNCHR, shelter, food and cash assistance, health care, and education services in Kakuma and Dadaab are primarily provided by the international community (UNHCR & World Bank, 2020).

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