When foreign aid to refugee-hosting areas was cut, local support for hosting refugees dropped.

Hosting refugees brings heavy local costs, which foreign aid often offsets through jobs, public services, and other benefits. These perks build the local support needed to keep hosting programs going. To see what happens when that money vanishes, a researcher studied Kenya during foreign aid cuts in 2025. They checked how people reacted using national surveys, experiments, panel tracking near Kakuma refugee camp, and interviews. The study found that support for hosting refugees dropped in host regions compared to the rest of the country during the peak of the cuts. Inside those communities, support fell most among households that directly lost aid-funded jobs or services. Meanwhile, overall national support did not change, showing that local backing depends heavily on sustained aid.

Why it matters

When wealthy countries cut aid to regions that host refugees, the local residents who bear the costs of asylum lose their reason to support it. This can weaken the entire international refugee system, because national governments rely on these communities to cooperate. The findings warn that withdrawing aid doesn't just hurt budgets—it can unravel the political agreement that makes refugee protection possible.

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