How migrants who move between Zimbabwe and South Africa access healthcare in border towns [The Conversation, September 2022]

Title:

How migrants who move between Zimbabwe and South Africa access healthcare in border towns

 

Authors:

Vinayak Bhardwaj 

Regional Migration Referent, Johns Hopkins University

 

Published:

The Conversation, 5 September 2022

https://theconversation.com/how-migrants-who-move-between-zimbabwe-and-south-africa-access-healthcare-in-border-towns-189822

 

From the article:

Zimbabwe and South Africa share a 225 km common border. There is only one official border crossing, at Beitbridge. An estimated 15,000 migrants and refugees from Zimbabwe and other countries cross daily either through the official border post or at illegal crossing points. Migrants’ access to healthcare, particularly in the two towns along this border – Beitbridge and Musina – has come into sharp focus after the health minister of Limpopo province made disparaging remarks to a Zimbabwean woman seeking help at a South African hospital. Doctors Without Borders has been providing healthcare to displaced populations at Beitbridge for 22 years. The Conversation Africa spoke to Doctors Without Borders’ regional migration advisor Vinayak Bhardwaj about their research into migrants’ healthcare needs in the area.

 

The role of institutional practice, non-educational actors and social networks in shaping refugee student lifeworlds in Ugandan higher education [Scholarly Article - Transformation in Higher Education, 2022]

Title:

The role of institutional practice, non-educational actors and social networks in shaping refugee student lifeworlds in Ugandan higher education

 

Authors:

Rovincer Najjuma, Department of Foundations and Curriculum Studies, College of Education and External Studies, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda 

Michael Gallagher, Centre for Research in Digital Education, Moray House School of Education and Sport, Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, United Kingdom 

&

Rebecca Nambi, Department of Foundations and Curriculum Studies, College of Education and External Studies, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda

 

Published:

Transformation in Higher Education, 26 July 2022

https://thejournal.org.za/index.php/thejournal/article/view/184

 

Abstract:

Background: Participation in higher education can be empowering for refugees, yet this participation is contingent on a range of structures, practices and policies, many of which are not readily accessible.  

 

Aim: Informed by Habermas’ lifeworlds, this study examined higher education meso-level institutional practices and how non-higher education actors support access and participation of refugee students.  

 

Setting: This research was conducted with (1) refugee students in three private universities and one public university representing several regions in Uganda, (2) administrative staff from these same universities and (3) staff from non-higher education support organisations that help navigate universities for refugee students.  

 

Methods: Data were generated through desk research identifying policy language, a survey and 25 semi-structured interviews with students and staff at universities and staff at support organisations.  

 

Results: Institutional policy homogeneously frames refugee students as international students, which in turn has a cascading impact on the lifeworlds of these students. The first theme includes university policies and administrative practices which structure the lifeworlds of these students. The second is the role of non-higher education supporting organisations that focus on refugee support and education. The third theme describes how non-academic structures, such as clubs and social networks designed to meet the students’ social welfare, are contingent in structuring the lifeworlds of these students.  

 

Conclusion: These themes interoperate and have a structuring effect on the lifeworlds of these students. The cascading impact of classifying refugee students as international students deserves further scrutiny, particularly in its impact on institutional and individual student patterns of participation.

 

The Conversation, 18 May 2020 - University education in refugee camps must meet refugee needs

Title:
University education in refugee camps must meet refugee needs

Authors:
Paul O'Keeffe & Abdeljalil Akkari

Published:
The Conversation, 18 May 2020
https://theconversation.com/university-education-in-refugee-camps-must-meet-refugee-needs-137796

From the article:
"Online education has, in recent years, emerged as one of the main methods of delivering higher education in the camps.  

Refugee camps lack infrastructure, have few resources and people are confined far away from traditional higher education institutions. Coupled with advances in technology and global education inter-connectivity, online education is touted as a viable solution for refugees that seek further learning.  

While there is great potential for online higher education to reach many people, caution needs to be paid if online education is to live up to the hype."

Relief International (RI) Report (21 April 2020) - Key Findings of RI Distance Education Survey in camps (March 2020)

Title:
Key Findings of RI Distance Education Survey in camps

Source:
Relief International

Primary country:
Jordan

Other country:
Syrian Arab Republic

Published:
ReliefWeb, 21 April 2020

Focus:
Relief Iinternational (RI) reached out to 1705 households in two camps, 1203 in Zaatari and 502 in Azraq, including 950 Male and 755 Female.

To download the report:
https://reliefweb.int/report/jordan/key-findings-ri-distance-education-survey-camps-mar-2020

Scholarly Article: Supporting Refugee Distance Education: A Review of the Literature

Title:
Supporting Refugee Distance Education: A Review of the Literature

Authors:
Randa Taftaf & Christy Williams

Published:
American Journal of Distance Education, volume 33, 2 December 2019
https://doi.org/10.1080/08923647.2020.1691411

From the abstract:
The sudden influx of refugees into countries around the world has caused a complicated, multi-faceted, international refugee crisis. Refugees, whether in camps or urban areas, face a myriad of problems and obstacles, yet one of the most critical issues young refugees face is the lack of educational opportunities and/or resources. United Nations International Childern's Emergency Fund warns that this lack of education could potentially create a "lost generation" which may lead to serious implications, not only for these young refugees but also to surrounding, nearby societies. This paper seeks to understand if and how Information and Communication Technology (ITCs) have been reported in the literature as being used in different contexts to connect young refugees with high quality educational opportunities, and whether the urban or camp contexts impact these opportunities.

Short article: Inclusion via education: integrating refugees in German society

Title:
Inclusion via education: integrating refugees in German society

Authors:
Miranda Sieg and Bernhard Streitwieser

Published: 
EAIE, 28 August 2019

From the blog post:
"For a year spanning 2015-2016, Europe experienced sudden and massive arrivals of migrants and refugees, quickly dubbed a 'crisis' by the media. As of 2019, host countries in Europe are still dealing with the aftermath. But Germany has quickly risen to the fore for its initial welcome and the innovative approaches it has taken to accommodating the arrival of newcomers four years ago. Based on interviews conducted in the summer of 2019 as part of an intensive two-week study tour that explored the integration of refugees into German higher education, this blog post will briefly discuss Germany's approach to integration through higher education and how this has made for a German higher education landscape that is more inclusive of refugees."

To read the blog post:
https://www.eaie.org/blog/inclusion-via-education-integrating-refugees-in-german-society.html