Dadaab’s markets, skills and businesses take centre stage in private sector dialogue

Nairobi, Kenya – Leaders from banking, agriculture, technology, mobility, investment and consumer businesses brought distinct sector perspectives to a shared question: how can responsible private-sector engagement build on Dadaab’s existing economic activity?

Convened by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and ICC Kenya, the roundtable explored opportunities across financial services, digital connectivity, agricultural value chains, skills and enterprise. It was informed by the UNHCR–Mastercard Foundation partnership, which supports learning-to-earning pathways across Africa through private-sector mobilization, policy engagement and access to work and enterprise.

Dadaab is home to 414,748 forcibly displaced people and 15,000 businesses. Together, those figures capture both the scale of displacement and the depth of economic activity within Dadaab.

Long known internationally as one of the world’s largest refugee-hosting sites, Dadaab is also a municipality and commercial hub, where refugee and host communities live, work, trade and build businesses within a shared local economy. This fuller picture brings into view the knowledge, ownership and enterprise already rooted there, and the potential for responsible partnerships to build on them.

The roundtable was grounded in this broader understanding of Dadaab. Discussions focused on how private-sector engagement could build on existing economic activity through investment, service expansion, technical expertise and stronger market linkages.

Julius Opio, Chairman of ICC Kenya, highlighted how the partnership with UNHCR creates space for businesses to explore commercial opportunities, exchange perspectives and identify practical pathways for engagement.

“ICC Kenya’s partnership with UNHCR is helping unlock opportunities for investment and business engagement in refugee-hosting areas such as Dadaab,” he said. “For the private sector, Dadaab presents real potential, and that potential must be approached responsibly, practically and in partnership.”

The conversation brought several connected entry points into focus. One of the clearest was wider access to formal financial services for people and businesses.

“When we look at Dadaab, we see customers, entrepreneurs, and businesses that require access to banking, savings, financing, payments, and digital financial services,” said Jamal Rashid Harry, Product Development Manager at KCB Sahl Bank. “Financial inclusion is one of the first building blocks for local economic growth.”

Financial inclusion was closely linked to another practical question: whether people and businesses can access the digital infrastructure through which modern services and markets operate. Safaricom PLC brought this technology perspective into the discussion.

“When people can register, transact and participate in digital systems, they become part of the wider economic ecosystem,” said Ida Gacheri, Product Manager, Safaricom PLC. “Digital access can help connect refugees to services, businesses, suppliers and customers.”

The range of perspectives reflected both strong commercial interest and a desire to understand how Dadaab’s economy works in practice. In agriculture, attention centered on the full value chain – from livestock and smallholder production to aggregation, finance, technical support and access to buyers.

“Small-scale producers become much more viable when they are organized, supported and connected to markets,” said Harry Laga, Lead: Generation Africa, at AGRA. “With the right aggregation models, technical support and business linkages, farmers in and around Dadaab can grow into investable enterprises.”

That same depth of interest extended to skills and enterprise. CFAO Mobility and Toyota Academy pointed to vehicle servicing, diagnostics, spare parts and garage operations as areas where practical training could respond to local demand, support employment and enable new businesses.

Taken together, these perspectives described Dadaab as an interconnected economy: finance enables transactions, technology expands access, agricultural value chains link producers to buyers, and skills underpin employment and enterprise. They also raised a broader question: who is able to participate in that economy, and on what terms?

Waithera Ng’ang’a, Group Director of Cooperative Affairs at BioFoods, said: “Building an inclusive society means that we should accord everyone, including refugees, the ability to participate in the economy with dignity as workers, entrepreneurs, suppliers, and customers.”

For businesses, that principle has practical implications. Direct engagement can help companies understand demand, assess supply and develop services and partnerships with refugee entrepreneurs based on their priorities and experience.

“This is a market with real potential,” she said. “Businesses need clear pathways to work with the people who need these services and who are already contributing to the local economy.”

Turning that interest into sustained business activity requires a workable operating and policy environment. Documentation, work rights, movement, access to finance, infrastructure and market linkages all affect the ability of companies to invest, hire or establish partnerships. Julius Motaroki, COO of RentCo Africa, pointed to advocacy as one way ICC Kenya could support that process.

“ICC Kenya can help bring private sector perspectives into policy conversations,” the representative said. “That kind of advocacy is important for creating the conditions that allow partnerships to grow and operate effectively.”

Such policy engagement is one part of the picture. Infrastructure, market access and coordination among government, businesses, partners and communities also influence whether opportunities can develop sustainably. Fatima Mohammed-Cole, UNHCR Representative in Kenya, placed this coordination within Kenya’s broader approach to inclusion.

“Kenya has shown remarkable leadership in hosting refugees, and the next step is to strengthen the systems that allow inclusion to work in practice,” she said. “That means bringing together government, the private sector, development partners and communities to invest in infrastructure, livelihoods and market access.”

For UNHCR, the roundtable is part of a longer process: ensuring that commercial interest is informed by local priorities and connected to practical opportunities. Nancy Aburi, Chief of Partnerships Africa at UNHCR, reflected on what makes that process work.

“This kind of dialogue is very helpful to connect business interest with opportunities that benefit refugees and host communities,” she said. “UNHCR can provide data, convene multiple stakeholders and partners to create an enabling environment. The private sector brings investment, innovation, and market linkages that can turn potential into a practical opportunity.”

The conversation can also extend beyond those in the room. Through its wider membership and policy engagement, ICC Kenya can help more companies examine the opportunities raised and identify where their capabilities might fit. Opio linked that continued engagement to broader gains across the local economy.

“When refugees can work and participate more fully in the economy, the benefits extend across the ecosystem,” said Opio. “Businesses grow, jobs are created, government revenues can increase, and local economies become stronger.”

The next step moves the engagement from Nairobi to Dadaab. A UNHCR-led visit will give interested business leaders the opportunity to meet refugee and host community entrepreneurs, hear their priorities, understand operating realities and assess possibilities for services, investment and partnerships.

Grounding those decisions in local knowledge will help ensure that future engagement reflects local priorities and is shaped with the people and businesses already driving Dadaab’s economy.