| dc.description.abstract | As early as the late 1980's, the rapidly deteriorating political situation in Somalia speiled trouble for the Horn of Africa country. By I 991, the government had collapsed and hundreds of thousands of Somalis sought refuge from the conflict in neighboring countries, among them - Kenya. The scale of migration from Somalia was so large that the government of Kenya sought new policies to manage the refugees. Closing down most of the refugee camps along the Somali border, the government moved most of the Somali refugees to Dadaab refugee camp. In this way, Kenya established its unofficial encampment policy that required all refugees to reside in the designated refugee camps. Nonetheless, Somali refugees moved to urban areas either through special UNHCR exceptions or by self-settling. In Nairobi, a majority of Somali refugees found residence in Eastleigh. Many of these urban refugees are often self-supporting and make significant contributions to the Kenyan society. Their existence in Kenya within the transitional status of refugee for almost two decades warranted further examination.
This study ofters a scholarly approach to the question of Somali refugee integration in Kenya. Through an examination of the history of Somalis in Kenya as well as the experiences of Somali refugees in Eastleigh, this study sought to answer the following question - what has Contributed or hindered the integration of Somali refugees' into Kenya. The study aimed to investigate the underlying factors affecting the intergration of urban Somali refugees into Kenyan society and to analyze the impact of urban Somali refugees on Kenyan society. The study utilized secondary data from books, articles and reports, while primary data from in-depth interviews with Somalis in Eastleigh and other expert informants filled any gaps. The infonnants Were randomly selected from the field site in Eastleigh.
The study sought to test the hypotheses that security and economic concerns were the main factors preventing Somali refugee integration, and that the impact of urban Somali refugees on Kenyan society has been more positive than perceived. The Constructivist theory of identity allowed for the examination of what it means to be a refugee, a Somali and a Kenyan in a dynamic situation in which socio-politico-economic forces can alter the reality. This study argues that after almost two decades, despite their understated contributions, Somali refugees have become a part of the social fabric of Nairobi. While security and economic concerns prevent their legal integrations, this study makes the claim that Somali refugees are de-facto integrated into Kenya. For the past 19 years, Kenya has been the only home that many Somalis know. As it is not clear that stability will return to Somalia in the coming future, many have effectively settled in Kenya. | en_US |
