Full Text Available

Note: Clicking the button above will open the full text document at the original institutional repository in a new window.

Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been facing a displacement crisis since 1994. This study focused on eastern DRC, as it has endured protracted conflict resulting in the forced displacement of millions of people. The majority of internally displaced persons (IDPs) are located in the eas...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Moseley, Maya
Format: Thesis
Published: AUC Knowledge Fountain 2012
Subjects:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1867613415359381504
access_status_str Open Access
author Moseley, Maya
author_browse Moseley, Maya
author_facet Moseley, Maya
author_sort Moseley, Maya
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv The author retains all rights with regard to copyright. The author certifies that written permission from the owner(s) of third-party copyrighted matter included in the thesis, dissertation, paper, or record of study has been obtained. The author further certifies that IRB approval has been obtained for this thesis, or that IRB approval is not necessary for this thesis. Insofar as this thesis, dissertation, paper, or record of study is an educational record as defined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 USC 1232g), the author has granted consent to disclosure of it to anyone who requests a copy.
description The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been facing a displacement crisis since 1994. This study focused on eastern DRC, as it has endured protracted conflict resulting in the forced displacement of millions of people. The majority of internally displaced persons (IDPs) are located in the eastern region of the country, finding refuge with host families and communities. Despite the vast number of IDPs living outside of displacement camps, scholars and practitioners generally focus their attention on camps. The purpose of this research was to examine the experiences of IDPs living in host communities, to shed light on this invisible population. Interviews were conducted with IDPs who had self-settled in the towns of Bukavu and Mudaka in the province of South Kivu. The research explored three aspects of displacement: cause of displacement, flight, and settlement. The thesis found that a high number of IDPs experienced direct violence related to the conflict that forced them to flee. Many brave risks of future attacks to stay near their homes and livelihoods but eventually decide to flee further from the violence, leaving behind their personal resources. Once in a host community, IDPs are faced with the dilemma of securing food and shelter despite having lost their livelihoods and resources during displacement. IDPs demonstrate resilience in developing new livelihoods but are confined by the informal job market in their host communities. The research found that IDPs in Mudaka were able to find employment in the local agriculture sector, similar to their traditional livelihoods; while IDPs in Bukavu were forced to find work in the over-saturated urban environment, most often as porters. In both cases livelihoods only provided enough income to live on a subsistence basis, where choices between food, shelter, and education had to be made. Finally, the research highlighted questions of integration into host communities as well as possibilities of return and reintegration. Participants from Bukavu overwhelmingly wished to return to their homes once their villages become secure enough, where as those in Mudaka had little desire to return to their homes.
format Thesis
id oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-2037
institution American University in Cairo (Egypt)
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:35:44.926Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress
publishDate 2012
publishDateRange 2012
publishDateSort 2012
publisher AUC Knowledge Fountain
publisherStr AUC Knowledge Fountain
record_format dspace
source_str AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress
spelling oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-2037 Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo Moseley, Maya The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been facing a displacement crisis since 1994. This study focused on eastern DRC, as it has endured protracted conflict resulting in the forced displacement of millions of people. The majority of internally displaced persons (IDPs) are located in the eastern region of the country, finding refuge with host families and communities. Despite the vast number of IDPs living outside of displacement camps, scholars and practitioners generally focus their attention on camps. The purpose of this research was to examine the experiences of IDPs living in host communities, to shed light on this invisible population. Interviews were conducted with IDPs who had self-settled in the towns of Bukavu and Mudaka in the province of South Kivu. The research explored three aspects of displacement: cause of displacement, flight, and settlement. The thesis found that a high number of IDPs experienced direct violence related to the conflict that forced them to flee. Many brave risks of future attacks to stay near their homes and livelihoods but eventually decide to flee further from the violence, leaving behind their personal resources. Once in a host community, IDPs are faced with the dilemma of securing food and shelter despite having lost their livelihoods and resources during displacement. IDPs demonstrate resilience in developing new livelihoods but are confined by the informal job market in their host communities. The research found that IDPs in Mudaka were able to find employment in the local agriculture sector, similar to their traditional livelihoods; while IDPs in Bukavu were forced to find work in the over-saturated urban environment, most often as porters. In both cases livelihoods only provided enough income to live on a subsistence basis, where choices between food, shelter, and education had to be made. Finally, the research highlighted questions of integration into host communities as well as possibilities of return and reintegration. Participants from Bukavu overwhelmingly wished to return to their homes once their villages become secure enough, where as those in Mudaka had little desire to return to their homes. 2012-02-01T08:00:00Z thesis application/pdf https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/1038 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/2037/viewcontent/InternalDisplacementOutsidetheCamp_SouthKivu_Moseley.pdf The author retains all rights with regard to copyright. The author certifies that written permission from the owner(s) of third-party copyrighted matter included in the thesis, dissertation, paper, or record of study has been obtained. The author further certifies that IRB approval has been obtained for this thesis, or that IRB approval is not necessary for this thesis. Insofar as this thesis, dissertation, paper, or record of study is an educational record as defined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 USC 1232g), the author has granted consent to disclosure of it to anyone who requests a copy. Theses and Dissertations AUC Knowledge Fountain Congo (Democratic Republic) Interlly displaced persons
spellingShingle Congo (Democratic Republic)
Interlly displaced persons
Moseley, Maya
Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo
title Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo
title_full Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo
title_fullStr Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo
title_full_unstemmed Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo
title_short Internal displacement outside the camp: recognizing displacement in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo
title_sort internal displacement outside the camp recognizing displacement in south kivu democratic republic of congo
topic Congo (Democratic Republic)
Interlly displaced persons
url https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/1038
https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/2037/viewcontent/InternalDisplacementOutsidetheCamp_SouthKivu_Moseley.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT moseleymaya internaldisplacementoutsidethecamprecognizingdisplacementinsouthkivudemocraticrepublicofcongo