Exploring the Impact of Displacement and Encampment on Domestic Violence in Kakuma Refugee Camp

Abstract

This paper explores how conditions of life in a refugee camp contribute to domestic violence. It draws on the ‘nested ecological model’ of domestic violence (Dutton 2001), which integrates individual and family factors, socio-economic context, and culture. Displacement depletes the resources available to refugees at each of these levels. Eighteen focus group discussions were held in Kakuma refugee camp (Kenya). Most displacement-related factors identified as contributing to domestic violence are consequences of the structural conditions of refugees’ lives. This suggests that systems for providing refuge have the potential not only to contribute to domestic violence, but to reduce it.