Assessment of employment- intensive investment strategies in refugee-hosting communities in Ethiopia

The report identifies short- and medium-term interventions for the creation of jobs, infrastructure and other assets for host, IDP and refugee communities by means of interventions by the Employment-Intensive Investment Programme (EIIP).

The ILO’s vision within the PROSPECTS Partnership concerns strengthening decent work in countries impacted by forced displacement, to mitigate stress and support access to labour markets, plus empowerment of host communities and forcibly displaced populations.

The objective of this report is to identify short- and medium-term interventions for the creation of jobs, infrastructure and other assets for host, IDP and refugee communities by means of interventions by the Employment-Intensive Investment Programme (EIIP), which adhere to ILO decent work and social protection. This report arises from visits to Afar, Benishangul-Gumuz, Somali and Tigray regional states (with Netherlands Embassy, UNHCR and IOM) in 2019, which undertook scoping for the refugees, IDPs and host communities in those regions.

Through the EIIP, the ILO supports member countries in the design, formulation, implementation and evaluation of policies and programmes that are aiming to address unemployment and underemployment by means of public investment, typically in infrastructure development and environmental works. The key strategy of the programme is the use of employment-intensive and local resource-based approaches for the construction and maintenance of public assets in a range of sectors. Implementation modalities range from direct employment of individuals to engaging small and medium enterprises (contractors and consultants) and communities to undertake public works. In doing so, the EIIP gathers not only public institutions, but also local communities, civil societies and private enterprises. Planning of such infrastructure investment programmes considers life-cycle costs of usage and maintenance, as well as job creation and environmental sustainability. In the short term, the EIIP creates entry points into the formalization of employment through job creation schemes, which offer immediate decent job opportunities and income generation, serving to extend social protection in the informal economy. In the long term, the infrastructure built through labour-based approaches becomes an asset that stimulates the economy and generates local multiplier effects. Furthermore, the skills acquired through the construction works, thanks to adequate training approaches using international standards, improve not only the employability of workers for subsequent jobs, but also contribute to the development of local private contractors through Public-Private Partnership (PPP), particularly for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).