Refugee’s Right to Work in Ethiopia

The Refugees Proclamation has introduced substantive changes on refugee’s access to socio-economic rights. Under the UN Refugee Convention, ‘the most favored nationals’ standard of treatment is only applicable to refugee’s wage-earning employment. Concerning self-employment and liberal professions, the Convention only stipulates for states to grant refugees a ‘treatment as favorable as possible and, in any event, not less favorable than what is accorded to aliens generally. However, the Refugees Proclamation guarantees refugee’s right to engage in wage-earning employment, self-employment, and liberal professions, in the same circumstance as ‘the most favorable treatment accorded to foreign nationals.’ Moreover, the Refugees Proclamation has also partially incorporated Article 17(2) of the Convention, which the country has entered a reservation. Thus, Article 26 of the Proclamation has outlined refugee’s right to employment in Ethiopia in a more progressive manner than the UN Refugee Convention.

The designation of ‘the most favored foreigners’ in Ethiopia is the underlying factor that determines the scope of refugee’s right to work in Ethiopia. The literal interpretation of the term will obviously lead to the treatment accorded to FEOs. FEOs enjoy the most favorable treatment in Ethiopia as they are accorded a right to access employment without obtaining a work permit and permission to engage in all areas of investment reserved for Ethiopians. However, the Refugee’s Employment Directive has set aside the special privilege of FEOs and has stipulated for the treatment of refugees on par with ordinary foreigners in wage-earning employment, self-employment, and liberal professions. This might be due to the unique set of objectives that predicates the special privilege for FEOs as well as practical challenges that might be faced as a result of opening the scant national labor market for hundreds of thousands of refugees.

The obligation of states to provide international protection to refugees is fundamentally based on pragmatism which tries to balance the capacity and willingness of states on one hand and the minimum conditions required for the basic protection of refugees on the other.[1] According to Mr. Rochefort, a representative of France in the drafting process of the UN Refugee Convention, unless the obligation of states is to be formulated in a form that would be acceptable to governments, a liberal approach that is blind to the facts of reality could only beat the air.[2] Therefore, advocating for the positive interpretation of the standard of treatment under the Refugees Proclamation will only lead to unrealistic aspiration, which is against the spirit of the principles of international protection as envisaged by the drafters of the UN Refugee Convention.

Generally, refugees cannot be hired in the Regional Civil Service, albeit it is scarcely possible for them to be employed in the Federal Civil Service if they possess high-level professional skills that are scarcely found from Ethiopian nationals. Refugees are prohibited from being employed as public prosecutors, judges, as members of the defense force, national security agencies, foreign affairs, and other similar political establishments. However, refugees can be employed in the private sector upon obtaining work permits from relevant authorities. Work permits are very restrictive and could only be issued in fields of work that cannot be covered by Ethiopian nationals. This will exclude the majority of refugees from accessing the labor market. Refugees cannot be hired as waiters, cashiers, cleaners, security personnel, daily laborers similar jobs. Only those refugees with high-level skills will be eligible to obtain work permits and access employment in Ethiopia.

The Refugee’s Employment Directive provides that refugees will also be treated on par with ordinary aliens concerning self-employment (which also includes liberal professions). This will prohibit refugees from engaging in small scale businesses such as retail trade, tearoom, coffee shops, bars, small restaurants, bakery, grinding mills, barbershops, beauty salons, smithery, and tailoring work. Refugees will only be allowed to engage in areas of investment that are not reserved for domestic investors, joint investment with the government, or with domestic investors. This will leave refugees with the possibility of engaging in largescale commercial and business activities with a minimum capital requirement of USD 50,000 – 200,000.

However, the favorable treatment accorded to Djiboutian nationals in relation to self-employment should be extended to refugees in Ethiopia. Because, if we set aside the special privilege of FEOs for their unique policy justifications, Djiboutian nationals will become the most favored foreign nationals regarding investment. Thus, interpretation of article 26(2&3) will lead us to the conclusion that refugees should at least be treated on par with Djiboutian nationals in relation to self-employment and liberal profession. Moreover, unlike the unique objectives that predicated FEOs special privileges, refugees should not be deprived of the favorable treatment accorded to Djiboutian nationals based on policy justification. This will make the position of the Refugee’s Employment Directive incompatible with the Refugees Proclamation.

According to the Refugees Proclamation, restrictions made for the protection of the national labor market will not apply to refugees with Ethiopian spouses or children. This means refugees with Ethiopian spouses or children could freely engage in wage-earning employment without obtaining work permits. Article 19(3/b) of the Refugee’s Employment Directive has extended this arrangement to also apply to the self-employment of refugees. Therefore, refugees with Ethiopian spouses or children could be self-employed in fields of business that are reserved for Ethiopian nationals. This is commendable and it creates opportunities that are more favorable for refugees beyond what is stipulated under the UN Refugee Convention and the Refugees proclamation. However, this arrangement is prone to be amended anytime by ARRA and it does not guarantee a claimable right under the Refugees Proclamation.

The joint project arrangement is the most creative approach introduced by the Refugees Proclamation to enable refugees to access more employment opportunities. This arrangement will allow the Ethiopian government to provide unrestricted job opportunities for refugees without compromising the existing national labor market. Projects financed by international partners will be extended for both refugees and host communities without restriction based on refugee/citizenship status. Refugees engaged in such projects will be given equal treatment as accorded to Ethiopian nationals engaged in the same projects.  In such projects, substantive restrictions made on the employment of non-citizens as well as other requirements such as work permits, investment permits, and capital requirements will be lifted for the benefit of refugees. Numerous refugees could access unrestricted job opportunities in the form of wage-earning or self-employment.

[1] Hathaway (n 52), p. 96;

[2] Statement of Mr. Rochefort, Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Status of Refugees and Stateless Persons: Summary Record of the Thirty-fourth Meeting, By General Assembly, 30 November 1951, at <https://www.unhcr.org/protection/travaux/3ae68cdf0/conference-plenipotentiaries-status-refugees-stateless-persons-summary.html> (last accessed May 17, 2020)