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Developmental Humanitarianism, Resilience and (Dis)empowerment in a Syrian Refugee Camp
Author(s) -
Pasha Suraina
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of international development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.533
H-Index - 66
eISSN - 1099-1328
pISSN - 0954-1748
DOI - 10.1002/jid.3454
Subject(s) - refugee , empowerment , agency (philosophy) , state (computer science) , corporate governance , resilience (materials science) , psychological resilience , scope (computer science) , political science , sociology , economic growth , political economy , law , psychology , social psychology , economics , social science , management , physics , algorithm , computer science , thermodynamics , programming language
Through a case study on Za'atari camp in Jordan, this paper joins a growing body of critical studies highlighting discrepancies between developmental humanitarian policies promoting the resilience and empowerment of refugees vis‐à‐vis realities inside camps. It shows how camp authorities incrementally unwound and stifled refugee self‐governance structures and informal entrepreneurialism. It also highlights the influence of Jordanian state priorities over the aid operation and the supportive role played by the UN Refugee Agency in affirming state priorities. The paper argues that even if well‐intentioned developmental humanitarianism can ultimately diminish the scope for meaningful refugee empowerment. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.