Resettling Refugees in Rural and Regional Australia: Learning from Recent Policy and Program Initiatives

Abstract

Conscious policy and program support for the resettlement of refugees in regional and

Belonging, Strangerhood and Mobility: South Sudanese in a Rural Town, Victoria

“…This trend is accelerated because of the creation of new employment opportunities in some regional areas. Apart from that, affordable housing, escape from urban problems such as racist violence, drug abuse and youth peer pressure have been highlighted as some factors cause for migrants to move out from metropolitan areas (McDonald et al, 2009). In terms of secondary migration, some regional centres have become more popular destinations for migrants from the African continent.…”

Labour Force Participation and Employment of Humanitarian Migrants: Evidence from the Building a New Life in Australia Longitudinal Data

“…In Canada, highly educated refugees who had held professional and managerial position before arrival experienced downward occupational mobility (Krahn et al 2000) and refugees' human capital was found to have had little or no value in the Canadian labour market (Lamba 2003). In Australia, existing studies found that having an overseas qualification is not a significant predictor of employment status (Waxman 2001;, and that unemployment and underemployment of highly educated refugees are prevalent (McDonald-Wilmsen et al 2009). …”

Regionalizing Immigration, Health and Inequality: Iraqi Refugees in Australia

“…Since 2004, however, the Australian Government has actively resettled to regional towns and rural areas refugee and humanitarian entrants without existing social or family links elsewhere in Australia [17,34], and there has been a steady increase in the number of regional resettlement sites, programs and financial support for resettlement [35]. Locations for new settlements are chosen on the basis of employment opportunities, 'adequate' population size (greater than 20,000 to ensure adequate infrastructure to meet the specialized needs of humanitarian entrants) and population diversity, available and affordable rental housing, established mainstream and specialist services, and the ability of the host community to demonstrate a 'welcoming environment' [28].…”

“…Locations for new settlements are chosen on the basis of employment opportunities, 'adequate' population size (greater than 20,000 to ensure adequate infrastructure to meet the specialized needs of humanitarian entrants) and population diversity, available and affordable rental housing, established mainstream and specialist services, and the ability of the host community to demonstrate a 'welcoming environment' [28]. By 2008 (most recent available data), refugee regional resettlement initiatives had been implemented in almost all states and territories [17], with approximately 7.5 per cent of entrants settled in regional areas [28,36,37].…”

“…This policy has been implemented to some extent in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Portugal and Australia [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. To date, research on regional resettlement has been limited, although in Australia, both scholarly studies and research projects commissioned by government (by the federal Department of Immigration and Citizenship [DIAC] and its predecessors) have focused on the effectiveness of existing policy schemes and on labor market integration, income, education and training [17,18]. The planning and implementation of regional refugee resettlement, its administrative structures and processes, service delivery, and its gaps have also been explored [19,20].…”