From Care And Maintenance To Self-Reliance: Sustainable Business Model Connecting Malian Refugee Artisans To Swiss Markets Using Public-Private Partnerships

The refugee crisis has reached critical mass today, with governments, communities, and UNHCR alike all trying to keep abreast of providing necessary support to people fleeing war and persecution. UNHCR is mandated to lead and coordinate international action for the worldwide protection of refugees and the resolution of refugee problems, and its primary purpose is to safeguard the legal rights and well-being of refugees. Traditionally, economic empowerment and development work is left to other specialized agencies and national development plans, yet these agencies do not generally include refugees in their work. As a result, two-thirds of the world's refugee population is trapped in long stays, with the average being 17 years with little access to a sustained and viable source of income. There is a crisis within the refugee crisis, one of sheer waste of human potential that demands a response beyond basic humanitarian assistance.