Overview
The National Refugee Policy Implementation Plan (NRPIP) operationalises Zambia’s National Refugee Policy (2023). It provides a structured framework to strengthen protection, improve service delivery, and foster inclusion of asylum seekers, refugees, former refugees, stateless persons, and returnees.
The Plan is aligned with Zambia’s Vision 2030, the Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP), and international frameworks including the 1951 Refugee Convention, the 1967 Protocol, the 1969 OAU Refugee Convention, and the Global Compact on Refugees (2018).
Vision
“A just and inclusive society for asylum seekers, refugees, former refugees and returnees.”
Rationale
While Zambia has hosted refugees since the 1940s, refugee management has long been hindered by fragmented interventions, weak documentation systems, inadequate infrastructure, and exclusion from national development programmes. The Implementation Plan addresses these challenges by setting clear objectives, activities, targets, and budgets for the period 2023–2027.
Guiding Principles
- Human Rights: Upholding dignity and fundamental freedoms.
- Inclusiveness: Engaging all stakeholders regardless of gender, age, class, or disability.
- Non-Refoulement: Guaranteeing no forced return to danger.
- Partnership & Collaboration: Promoting burden- and responsibility-sharing.
- Transparency & Accountability: Ensuring open and accountable implementation.
Key Objectives and Strategic Measures
1. Strengthen Protection of Refugees
- Establish modern reception centres in border districts.
- Improve civil registration and integrate refugee data with national systems.
- Provide identity documents and raise public awareness on refugee rights.
- Enhance access to justice through legal clinics, revised legislation, and court infrastructure.
- Prevent and reduce statelessness through ratification and domestication of international conventions.
2. Improve Access to Essential Social Services
- Expand access to education, skills training, and scholarships for refugee students.
- Ensure inclusion in healthcare, insurance, and WASH services.
- Modernise refugee settlements with housing, electricity, roads, and water reticulation.
- Strengthen social protection for vulnerable groups (children, elderly, women, persons with disabilities, GBV survivors).
3. Promote Livelihoods and Self-Reliance
- Enhance agricultural production with extension services, inputs, and market linkages.
- Support entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and cooperatives with host communities.
- Facilitate financial inclusion by engaging banks and microfinance institutions.
- Build resilience against climate shocks through awareness and adaptation measures.
4. Foster Co-existence with Host Communities
- Promote joint community projects and socio-cultural exchange.
- Upgrade shared infrastructure (roads, schools, health facilities) to benefit both refugees and hosts.
- Encourage inclusive governance at settlement and district level.
5. Strengthen Durable Solutions
- Support voluntary repatriation, resettlement, and local integration.
- Develop frameworks for identifying and assisting stateless persons.
- Facilitate relocation of refugees into resettlement schemes managed by the Office of the Vice President.
6. Enhance Coordination & Inclusion
- Establish multi-sectoral coordination mechanisms under the Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security.
- Integrate refugee data into national statistics and planning.
- Mobilise resources from government, partners, and the private sector for sustainable financing.
Costing & Implementation
- The Implementation Plan includes a comprehensive results matrix with measurable indicators, timelines (Year 1–5), responsible institutions, and cost estimates in Zambian Kwacha (ZMW).
- Activities range from infrastructure development (K150 million for reception centres) to legal reforms, education access, WASH programmes, and livelihood support.
- The Ministry of Home Affairs (Commissioner for Refugees) leads implementation, supported by line ministries (Health, Education, Agriculture, Community Development, Labour, etc.), CSOs, and UN agencies such as UNHCR, WFP, and IOM.
✅ In summary: The National Refugee Policy Implementation Plan (2023–2027) transforms Zambia’s refugee response from emergency-focused support into a development-oriented, inclusive, and rights-based approach. By addressing protection, livelihoods, essential services, and durable solutions, the Plan seeks to ensure refugees and host communities co-exist peacefully while contributing to national development.
