Beyond Aid: Building Inclusive Social Protection for Africa's Displaced Millions

A World Bank-led study argues that Africa’s Great Lakes Region must move beyond long-term dependence on humanitarian aid and integrate refugees, internally displaced persons, returnees, and host communities into national social protection systems. By expanding social assistance, improving legal rights, strengthening data systems, and increasing policy coordination, governments can promote economic inclusion, resilience, and sustainable development while reducing vulnerability and aid dependency.

A new World Bank report, produced in collaboration with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and other development partners, argues that Africa's Great Lakes Region must rethink how it responds to forced displacement. Covering Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, and Uganda, the study highlights how millions of refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), returnees, and host communities remain trapped in long-term crises that require more than emergency assistance.

A Crisis That Has Become a Way of Life

The Great Lakes Region hosts one of the world's largest and most prolonged displacement crises. By the end of 2024, the region was home to about 7.9 million internally displaced people and 2.5 million refugees. Many have spent years, and sometimes decades, away from their homes.

The DRC remains the centre of the crisis, with ongoing conflict driving both internal displacement and refugee movements across borders. Uganda hosts one of Africa's largest refugee populations, while Burundi and Rwanda continue to deal with the legacy of past conflicts and returning populations.

The report stresses that displacement is no longer a short-term humanitarian issue. It has become a long-term development challenge affecting jobs, education, healthcare, public services, and economic growth.

Why Humanitarian Aid Alone Is No Longer Enough

For decades, humanitarian agencies have provided food, shelter, healthcare, and protection to displaced populations. While these services remain essential during emergencies, the report argues they cannot be the primary solution for crises that last for generations.

Global aid budgets are under pressure, and humanitarian funding is becoming increasingly stretched. As a result, governments need systems that can continue supporting vulnerable populations even when external assistance declines.

The study suggests that countries should gradually shift from aid-dependent responses toward stronger national systems that help displaced people become more self-reliant and economically productive.

Social Protection as a Development Tool

At the centre of the report is the idea that social protection can play a much larger role in managing displacement. Social protection includes programmes such as cash transfers, public works schemes, livelihood support, and social assistance for vulnerable households.

Instead of treating refugees and displaced people as separate groups dependent on humanitarian aid, governments can include them in national social protection programmes alongside poor and vulnerable citizens. This approach allows support to be based on need rather than legal status.

The report argues that such inclusion can improve living standards, strengthen resilience, and reduce tensions between displaced populations and host communities. It can also help refugees and displaced people contribute to local economies through work, entrepreneurship, and spending.

What Policymakers Need to Do

The study identifies several policy priorities for governments.

First: Countries need legal frameworks that allow displaced people to work, move freely, and access public services. Restrictive policies often prevent refugees from becoming economically independent.

Second: Governments should improve coordination between social protection agencies, refugee authorities, and humanitarian organisations. Better coordination can reduce duplication and make assistance more effective.

Third: Stronger data systems are needed. Many displaced people are missing from national databases, making it difficult for governments to identify needs and target support. Expanding social registries and improving data-sharing systems would help policymakers make better decisions.

The report also calls for greater regional cooperation. Since displacement often involves movement across borders, neighbouring countries can benefit from coordinating policies, identification systems, and service delivery mechanisms.

A Roadmap for Long-Term Stability

The report's most important message is that social protection is not simply a welfare tool. It can also support economic development, social cohesion, and long-term stability. By helping vulnerable households cope with shocks and rebuild livelihoods, social protection programmes can reduce poverty and strengthen resilience in communities affected by displacement.

For policymakers, the findings provide a practical roadmap for responding to a challenge that is unlikely to disappear soon. Investing in inclusive social protection systems can reduce dependence on humanitarian aid, improve government capacity, and create opportunities for displaced populations and host communities alike.

As forced displacement continues to rise across Africa and beyond, the Great Lakes Region may offer an important lesson: lasting solutions will depend not only on emergency relief, but also on building stronger systems that give displaced people a chance to rebuild their lives and contribute to the societies that host them.