Abstract
This chapter explores what regional institutions, like the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, are doing to promote access to quality higher education for refugees, returnees, and host communities. The chapter examines existing policies, identifies gaps, and recommends needed policy changes to facilitate access to quality, equitable relevant higher education. The period covered by the study is from 2017 to 2023. The methodology used is a desk review of policy and discourse analysis, with narrative accounts of what IGAD and its member states aspire to do, what is missing in making higher education accessible to refugees, and what corrective measure should be done at both regional and nation level given the growing number of learners in the displacement-affected communities in the region. The analyses focus on policies or education sector development strategies. The findings reveal that, though education in general and higher education in particular has been identified as one of the fundamental areas of interventions, when it comes to refugees, higher education is rarely a priority. The chapter specifically appeals to the international financial institutions to create a regional window of opportunities of funding for regional organizations, including IGAD, and emphasize displacement-affected communities in their funding.