Cairo: A Transit City for Migrants and African Refugees
Author(s): A. Zohry
This paper focuses on experiences of African refugee families from Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea in Cairo, Egypt. The study is migrant-focused, although mainly based on secondary data, such as reports of international organizations and independent research and studies. The article starts with an analysis on immigration policies of the Egyptian government and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which decides refugee status in Egypt. Further discussion on these policy implementations shows a gap between theory and practice, in a case of educational opportunities for refugee children in Egypt. Egypt is a signatory of the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which stipulates that children have the right to free access to education and support for psychological recovery after war. However, in practice primary and secondary education for most refugees is not allowed in Egyptian public schools. Furthermore, refugees who want a university education must pay foreigners' fees in foreign currency. The paper concludes that further research has to be carried out in order to explore the intersection of policies that affect the condition of refugees. In particular, further research should investigate how refugees interact with the policy environment in this region and identify means of developing policies that enhance refugees' survival strategies and contributions to the host society.