Return to Kyaka II

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The researcher has returned to Kyaka II refugee settlement for a follow-up visit from the 20^th September – 20^th October. The primary aim of the return visit is:

• To present, gain feedback on and further discuss with all main stakeholders, including refugee children, any areas of innovation for the refugee protection process arising out of the previous period of research.

Secondary aims include:

• To gain further feedback on the process, impacts and benefits of the previous period of research for monitoring and evaluation purposes.
• To collect any additional data with respect to the innovation to address any gaps identified and ensure proper handover of information of use to practitioners in the field.

‘Member checking’ Providing feedback and discussing the results of the previous period of research with key stakeholders is an important process of ‘member checking’ – i.e. the participation of refugee children and practitioners in the analysis of the data and as well as in its collection. An initial feedback workshop has been run with a group of refugee children in the Reception Centre. Since the population there is very ‘fluid’, with refugees being moved from the Centre once their refugee status is confirmed, the children’s group contained both children involved in the previous research as well as children new to the researcher. The workshop involved presenting a visual and child friendly summary of what refugee children had said about their protection concerns on arrival and in the Reception Centre as well as their ideas for innovation and change. All children confirmed the validity of the problems and ‘voted’ on posters for the most important areas of change for children.

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Further feedback workshops are planned with groups of refugee children involved in the previous research as well as workshops with practitioners in both the settlement and in Kampala. For example, a session has been booked with community services and refugee status determination staff in OPM (Office of the Prime Minister) head office in Kampala.

Impact from previous visit The researcher has been in Kyaka II for one week. The child friendly poster produced during the previous visit (see blog Child friendly information on the refugee protection process) has been displayed at key locations around the base camp and as a signpost at the Reception Centre (see photos below). Practitioners have fed back positively about this poster / signpost and also the UNHCR child friendly interview room (see photo in blog Finishing field activities in Kyaka II). Examples have been given of where the environment of the interview room helped children to feel comfortable and open up during interview. The refugee Community Workers who were involved in the project previously provided the researcher with a report and children’s drawings from their continued sessions with refugee children on protection in the community. They have continued this independently on a voluntary basis.

Anna Skeels, PhD Student, CMPR – Swansea University