Evidence-based advocacy for effective refugee family reunification
Challenge
The lack of clarity and data on family reunification hinders policy making, systems design and internal planning, and makes it hard for UNHCR to achieve goals laid out in the Global Compact on Refugees. More information on needs, successes, and challenges in this space is required.
Solution
Closely examine 2–3 countries of current asylum and/or transit along a mixed migration route, plus 2–3 countries within the European Union, to develop a more holistic understanding of the family reunification process, taking a phased approach that leverages data science methodologies for data collection and analysis.
Impact
Framework of tools developed for the collection and analysis of data on needs, outcomes, and gaps regarding family reunification processes, to inform more effective and strategic advocacy.
Project impact
Other information
The right to family unity is a cornerstone of refugee protection, yet evidence on the true extent of family reunification needs has been fragmented and anecdotal, leaving UNHCR, governments and partners without the data needed to drive effective advocacy, policy and programming. Funded by the Data Innovation Fund and delivered with the International Security and Development Center, this project produced the first cross-country, evidence-based framework to estimate family reunification needs, combining secondary data analysis in Chad, Germany, and Italy with a replicable Kobo survey piloted across six UNHCR offices in Ethiopia and reaching 619 refugees from Eritrea, Somalia, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Sudan. The findings show that 75% of respondents wish to reunite with family abroad while 77% have never been able to attempt it and 72% are unaware of any organization that could help, with cost, complexity, and exit permissions emerging as the main barriers. The methodology offers a low-cost, replicable blueprint that can be embedded into UNHCR's ProGres registration system globally, turning family reunification from an under-evidenced gap into a measurable, actionable priority.