THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL PROTECTION ON RESETTLEMENT OF DISPLACED PERSONS: EVIDENCE FROM POST-CONFLICT NORTHERN UGANDA

Social protection is an action taken to reduce vulnerability and deprivation of households in times of need or disasters such as displacement by wars. This study investigates the impact of formal and informal social protection in the process of resettlement of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Northern Uganda. The data for the study come from a survey of randomly selected households which were still in the IDP camps and those that had resettled in their original homes. The methods of estimation applied are ordinary least squares, probit, logistic regressions and propensity score matching. The results show that formal social protection reduces the likelihood of resettlement, while informal social protection encourages it. Thus, there is a need to coordinate the informal and formal support systems when households in distress are being assisted. Copyright (C) 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.