2023, UNHCR, in partnership with Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) and with the support of CFAO Mobility Cameroon, has been implementing an automotive maintenance and repair training programme aimed at strengthening refugees’ economic self-reliance, expanding their access to sustainable livelihood and employment opportunities, and promoting their socio-economic inclusion. Inspired by a successful pilot initiative in Uganda, the programme enables participants to acquire certified technical skills in a sector with strong employment potential. Between 2023 and 2026, 50 refugees, including two female refugees from the Central African Republic, were trained through three successive cohorts. Beneficiaries included 47 refugees from the Central African Republic, with other refugees from Rwanda, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. To date, the programme has contributed to participants’ access to employment, self-employment and entrepreneurship opportunities. It has strengthened refugees' self-reliance and resilience, enabling them to contribute to local economic development and become active participants in their host communities while reducing reliance on humanitarian assistance. The project demonstrates how strategic private sector partnerships can create pathways to economic inclusion, supporting refugees to realise their potential as contributors to local development and strengthen social cohesion. The initiative contributes to UNHCR’s strategic ambition over the next decade to reduce by half the number of refugees in protracted displacement who remain dependent on humanitarian aid, expanding opportunities for them to achieve self-reliance through access to skills development, livelihoods and economic inclusion.
Save the Children UK Alumni Association
The Alumni Association of SC UK