Local Integration

Accepted by a Generous Host

Millions of refugees around the world live year after year with little hope of ever returning home. Some of them cannot go home because their countries are engulfed by endless conflict or, more often, because they fear persecution if they were to return. In cases where voluntary repatriation is not a viable option, finding a home in the country of asylum and integrating into the local community could offer a durable solution to their plight and the opportunity of starting a new life. Local integration is a complex and gradual process which comprises distinct but related legal, economic, social and cultural dimensions and imposes considerable demands on both the individual and the receiving society. In many cases, acquiring the nationality of the country of asylum is the culmination of this process. UNHCR estimates that, during the past decade, 1.1 million refugees around the world became citizens in their country of asylum.