The thesis aims at bringing into light the horrible traumatic experience of Poverty under which the former Moçambican refugees living in the Bushbuckridge area near Hazyview live. Unlike other writers who define poverty as a mere “insufficiency of the material necessities of life” (Hammond 2003:61) and “the inability of individuals, households or entire community to command sufficient resources to satisfy a socially acceptable minimum standard of living” (Pieterse 2001:30). The author approaches poverty in a holistic and integrated way, taking into account the political, economic, social, and behavioural as well as the spiritual component. The historical background of the violent war in Moçambican is given to enable the reader to understand how the Moçambican people were traumatized by the brutal killings that forced them to flee for safety in neighbouring countries including South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Malawi, etc. The author further aims at challenging the church, government, civil society and other concerned stakeholders to contribute meaningfully in working towards bringing positive change in the living conditions of these refugees. The combination of both quantitative and qualitative approaches is used to collect data necessary for the education of stakeholders on the poverty situation of the refugees. Academic literature alone is seen not to be sufficient as it may hover above the experience of these refugees. Quantitative approach will therefore help to engage the refugees to tell stories from their perspectives. The use of a structured questionnaire form is therefore used to obtain the data needed to help the concerned stakeholders gain a truer perception of the situation. This engagement of stakeholders is aimed at providing the refugees with opportunities to increase their awareness, and to help in the development of their skills to help them live effectively and deal with their problems more competently and independently. The study concludes with a summary of each chapter, suggesting ways and means of how the problem of persistent traumatic poverty among the Moçambican refugees can be addressed. / Dissertation (MA (Theology) : Practical Theology)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Practical Theology / unrestricted

There is a global concern for climate induced migration and a concern on how to tackle climate refugees. Climate refugees is a term that is not yet defined both internationally and at a European Union level. This thesis is researching the relation between climate refugees and the European Union. By using a critical discourse analysis this thesis analyses the internal factors for the European Union not reaching a common definition for the term climate refugee. By using material from the EU official website this thesis focuses on the textual, discursive and social practices based in Fairclough’s three dimensional model. This thesis found five factors for the European Union not reaching a common definition: the view on security, the lack of responsibility, financial and national interests and a view on that climate refugees are not a European problem.

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / This research foregrounds the experiences of raising a family as a refugee parent in Cape Town, using a case study of Somali refugee parents. Global reports have shown that international migrants make up 3.5% of the world’s population, an estimated 272 million people. In Sub-Saharan Africa, 88.9% of international migrants have been displaced and reside within the Sub-Saharan African countries. Somali migrants arrived in South Africa due to a civil war that ravaged Somalia for over 20 years. Several studies investigated the migrants’ experiences in the host country

Masters in Public Administration - MPA / The study assesses the application of policies on the right of refugees and asylum seekers with regard to the education of their children, and the many challenges impeding this right. Fundamental changes in the legal framework protecting the right to education of the children of refugees and asylum seekers have been in place since 1994, when South Africa became a democratic state. The principles of international treaties recognising the rights of children were incorporated into the Constitution of South Africa of 1996, demonstrating South Africa’s commitment to the protection of children’s rights. However, studies have suggested that, refugees’ and asylum seekers’ children have been discriminated against in terms of access to education, despite the legislative framework which provides for equal and inclusive education in South Africa. Access to education for migrant children in South Africa is invariably met with challenges which constitute a violation of the Constitution and international law. This study assessed policies and practices affecting refugees’ and asylum seekers’ children to access primary schools in a democratic South Africa. The researcher argues that access to education for refugees and asylum seeker’s children must be guided by the social justice principle of “every child deserves an education”, regardless of the legality of their parents in South Africa. Failure to afford them the opportunity to study is a violation of the Constitution and international law. The study used semi-structured interviews based on a questionnaire. Participants included parents who were refugees or asylum seekers,schools’ principals, and officials from Scalabrini Centre and the Western Cape Education Department (WCED). The data collected from respondents was presented, discussed and analyzed through a thematic analysis approach. From data collected, it was possible to identify the barriers preventing refugees’ and asylum seeker’s children from accessing education. Some of the barriers were generated from gaps in migration policy, ineffective policy implementation, poor documentation and various institutional challenges. Based on the study findings, it is recommended that South African lawmakers formulate policies that speak to the needs of the refugee child and amend the current migration policy to make it more reasonable and accommodative with regard to meeting the needs of migrants’ children in general, and refugee’ and asylum seekers’ children in particular. This would enable South Africa to uphold the constitutional values and its international obligations in relation to the promotion and protection of the right to education for all children.

Research on inequities, especially in health care access among immigrants in Germany, has always reflected some of the disparities between the resident population and the immigrants. However, little attention is always placed on the potential inequalities regarding health care within the immigrants (Arab immigrants). Across Europe, Germany is known to receive the highest immigrant numbers, especially from the Arabic world. Since 2013, Germany has received at least 400,000 to 1500,000 immigrants from the Arab world. For this reason, this study analyses challenges faced by the Arab immigrants in access to healthcare in Germany and the underutilization of the medical care services by the Arab immigrant community. The methodological angle undertaken in this study considers relevant literatures to the topic in analysis the state of the matter in Germany by comparing findings from the considered literatures from previous research on the same topic as the study herein. Upon carrying out the research, this study found out that apart from poor communication between Arab speakers and native German medical practitioners, unimplemented governing policies, inadequate knowledge of the services, discrimination, lack of data for medical preparedness, and financial problems instigated by the slow integration of...

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This project examines refugees' experiences of insecure housing and perceptions of home in the U.S. Many scholars of migration have focused on the resettlement experiences of refugees, including access to housing, yet refugees' experiences with housing in the U.S. remain largely undocumented. The following analyzes a case study of an apartment fire that displaced 16 refugee families in Dallas, Texas. Based on 18 in-depth interviews with tenants and members of refugee support organizations and non-profits who responded to the fire, this study reconstructs the events surrounding the fire to explore refugees' perceptions of housing conditions in a low-income neighborhood. This case study contributes to research on housing in two important ways. First, insecure housing conditions preceded the fire at Oakland Place and overall perceptions of housing quality varied among respondents. I find that case managers and members of refugee support organizations identify refugees' housing conditions as insecure, yet refugees express positive feelings about their homes, emphasizing community relations over building quality. Additionally, members of refugee support organizations and non-profits blamed the property manager of Oakland Place for insecure conditions experienced by refugees and perceived the manager as a barrier in refugees' lives. Second, I find that understandings of housing insecurity are shaped by meanings of home, which focus on familial and community-based relationships, and a place for survival. These ideas of home are not mutually exclusive, as refugees often defined home in more than one way.

This paper analyzes the socio-legal challenges relating to the return and reintegration of refugees. Using Rwanda as a case-study, it focuses on the conditions or factors necessary for a sustainable return and reintegration and the positive impact of the implementation of Rwanda’s post-conflict socio-legal framework. Also suggests practical solutions to addressing the challenges so as to achieve a durable return and re-integration of Rwandan refugees. / A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Law University of Pretoria, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Law (LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa). Prepared under the supervision of Kwadwo Appiagye-Atua, Faculty of Law, University of Ghana. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa))--University of Pretoria, 2009. / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/ / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

A research report submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education (Coursework and Dissertation), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2018 / Internal educator migration has emerged as one of the factors aiding inequalities in South African schools. A unidirectional movement of irreplaceable educators has become evident which aids the inequalities persisting amongst neighbouring schools. Irreplaceable educators move from public to former model C schools and from former model C schools to independent schools, leaving schools exposed to a less capable quality staff. This research aimed to voice the experiences of post internal-migration educators in Pretoria while determining the push and pull factors that lead to the unidirectional migration of educators between former model C schools to independent schools. The research comprised of a narrative study in which six participants were interviewed about their migration experiences. The results of the study revealed that internal educator migration is caused by six push factors in former model C schools: economic pressure, school management, personal and emotional experiences, poor academic achievement, lack of learner discipline and a high teacher to learner ratio. Internal educator migration is also aided by six pull factors offered by independent schools: good learner discipline, financial benefits, lighter workload, lower teacher to learner ratio, professional treatment and higher quality academic learners. The finding further revealed that educators from former model C schools are attractive to independent schools and are regularly headhunted by independent schools. The researcher concludes the research report with an analytic model of the factors which influence internal educator migration and recommended methods to alleviate the educator migration push factors. In addition, the researcher provides recommendations for educator retention and further studies. / XL2019

Since the dawn of democracy, South Africa has received high numbers of refugees from around the African continent in particular. One of the largest groups of refugees, Somalis, have established numerous enterprises in South African cities, concentrated in micro and small business sectors, particularly in the grocery and textile industries. The presence of Somali entrepreneurs and their role in the South African economy is contested, framed in relation to township informal economies and debates on xenophobia. Research to-date, however, focuses almost exclusively on Somali informal micro-enterprises in the spaza shop sector. To address this gap in the research and debate, this thesis examines Somali entrepreneurs, their development of varied formal enterprises, and their business strategies. I demonstrate in that these small formal businesses operate beyond the micro township-based informal spaza sector, building networks between township and city formal economies, and linking multiple economic sectors. In doing so, they act as a medium between producers of goods and general city consumers. The research demonstrates that Somali immigrant entrepreneurs can be considered what Bonacich (1973) describes as “middleman minorities.” This argument builds on qualitative research in Cape Town with Somali refugees who own formal small businesses that employ between five and a hundred employees. I draw on their histories, examine the evolution of their businesses, to substantiate how as newcomers - refugees, with limited knowledge about South African business dynamics, and little access to resources of the country - they managed to find their feet in business in varied ways. I show how Bellville as Cape Town’s Little Mogadishu, acts as a business hub and melting pot, a place to meet, to work together and connect their businesses to the rest of the city. From these histories, experiences, and networks, I analyse the business strategies that Somali entrepreneurs draw on, which include partnerships, shareholding, the building of trust, and their own mobility. I also investigate what enabled them to get a foot in the door when they first arrived, find new business opportunities, and access new markets in the city, region, and in some cases beyond. I argue that Somali immigrant entrepreneurs have created a diverse set of complex formal businesses, ranging from the sale of textiles, the processing of animal products, to consumer household goods. Through these businesses, these entrepreneurs have created jobs, new economic networks, new products, and extended markets, as well as physical retail and wholesale spaces. In making this argument, this research offers a better understanding of entrepreneurial work and its logics in the Cape Town Somali immigrant community. Their own experiences as entrepreneurs, as well as their business strategies, exceed by far narratives of informality, the spaza shop sector, and experiences of violence and xenophobia. This research broadens understandings of immigrant entrepreneurial activity in South African cities, and shift existing negative perceptions that depict refugees and immigrants as burdens on host communities and cities. I hope the research might also help inform the formulation of relevant policies for transitioning informal micro-enterprises in the country into small formal enterprises, one strategy that might address the critical issue of high unemployment in South African cities and society.