Urban refugees in Nairobi are not just survivors, they are entrepreneurs, artists, students, and changemakers. While systemic challenges persist, empowerment initiatives prove that with the right support, refugees can rebuild their lives and contribute meaningfully to society. By investing in their potential. We don’t just transform individual lives but we have strengthen entire communities.

Vocational training’s power lies in its immediacy-skills learned on Monday can earn income by Friday. From Ubuntu Youth Organization’s tailoring graduates launching tailoring boutiques in Kawangware for making and repairing clothes, these programs turn displacement into opportunity through hand-no-hands, market-aligned skills that bypass formal education barriers.

When a South Sudanese refugee transforms her traditional cooking skills into a catering business through BOMA’s mentorship, or when a Congolese artisan collective accesses global markets, we see self-reliance in action. These programs prove refugees aren’t aid recipients but economic actors, with every in local economic activity.

Group savings circles and microloans do what paperwork cannot, they turn refugee into entrepreneurs’ hustle in formal businesses. By recognizing alternative credit systems, these tools unlock capital for those excluded from traditional banking, proving financial access is the linchpin of self-reliance

In Nairobi’s jua kali workshops, apprenticeship isn’t just training, but it’s economic integration in action. When a Somali woman masters welding at Eastleigh’s Metalwork Collective or a young refugee earns while learning auto repair, they’re not just gaining skills but building bridges with host communities through shared labor markets.

The sewing machine that feeds a family today, the urban farm plot that pays school fees tomorrow for single refugee mothers, livelihood programs mean more than income. They’re tools to reclaim agency, with childcare-inclusive models like Ubuntu Youth Organization proving that supporting mothers creates ripple effects across generations.