How South Sudanese Refugee Students Access Higher Education in East Africa

DAFI: the main funded pathway to a degree

The Albert Einstein German Academic Refugee Initiative, known as DAFI, is the largest scholarship program built specifically for refugee students and has funded more than 21,500 refugees worldwide since the German government launched it in 1992. Recent cohorts include large numbers of students from Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan and Somalia, with close to half of all DAFI students studying in the countries that host the largest refugee populations, including Ethiopia, Kenya, Turkiye, Pakistan and Iran. UNHCR administers DAFI globally and works through country-level implementing partners, so how you apply depends on where you are registered as a refugee.

Kenya: Windle International and camp-based referral

Most South Sudanese refugees in Kenya are registered in Kakuma or Dadaab, and DAFI selection there runs through Windle International , which has been UNHCR's implementing partner for DAFI in Kenya since 2005. Selection typically starts with your secondary school results and a UNHCR or Windle International registration file, so keeping your refugee documentation and academic records up to date matters before you apply.

Uganda: settlement-based access under a self-reliance model

Uganda hosts a large share of South Sudanese refugees in settlements such as Bidibidi and Rhino Camp in the West Nile region, under a policy that gives refugees freedom of movement and the right to work, different from stricter encampment policies elsewhere in the region. Windle International also manages DAFI in Uganda, working with settlement-based secondary schools to identify candidates and support their transition to Ugandan universities.

Ethiopia: an Out of Camp Policy that now covers all refugees

Many South Sudanese refugees in Ethiopia live in the Gambella region. Ethiopia's Out of Camp Policy, which once applied only to Eritrean refugees, was extended by directive to refugees of other nationalities, giving more South Sudanese students the option to live and study outside camp settings. Ethiopia's Refugees and Returnees Service, working with UNHCR, has run DAFI scholarships for more than two decades, reaching over 2,600 students by the end of 2022, more than 800 of whom had graduated by that point.

Certificate recognition: the Djibouti Declaration

A South Sudanese secondary certificate is not automatically recognized by every East African university admissions office. In 2017, IGAD member states adopted the Djibouti Declaration on Refugee Education, which calls on governments to ratify and apply the Convention on Recognition of Studies, Certificates, Diplomas, Degrees and Other Academic Qualifications in Higher Education in African States as the basis for recognizing refugee and returnee qualifications. In practice, this means asking your host university's admissions office or UNHCR field office about the specific equivalency process for South Sudanese certificates in Kenya, Uganda or Ethiopia, since implementation still varies by country.

How to apply

1. Register your refugee status and keep documentation current with UNHCR or your host country's refugee agency.

2. Contact the DAFI implementing partner in your country of asylum: Windle International in Kenya and Uganda, or Ethiopia's Refugees and Returnees Service in Ethiopia, rather than applying to a university directly first.

3. Submit your secondary school results for certificate equivalency review as early as possible, since this step often takes longer than the scholarship application itself.

4. Apply within the DAFI selection window announced through your school or camp-based education office, since late submissions are rarely accepted.

Wherever you apply, plan around the fact that selection is competitive and places are limited relative to the number of refugee secondary school leavers each year, so applying to DAFI does not rule out also researching university scholarships open to international or self-sponsored students in your host country.

Beyond DAFI: other funded routes worth checking

DAFI is not the only scholarship refugee students can apply for. Host universities in Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia sometimes reserve a small number of places or fee waivers for refugee students outside the DAFI quota, and international scholarship programs open to African students generally do not exclude refugees who hold valid registration documents. Ask your host university's admissions office directly whether it runs a refugee or humanitarian fee waiver separate from DAFI, since many are not advertised outside the camp or settlement network.

A regional push to expand access

UNHCR has set a global target of raising refugee enrollment in higher education to 15 percent by 2030, up from a low base, and East Africa carries a large share of that goal given how many refugees Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia host. The push has translated into more scholarship slots and stronger pressure on governments to apply the Djibouti Declaration's certificate recognition commitments, though implementation still depends on each country's own university admissions rules.

Language of instruction differs by host country and affects how ready you are for university coursework. Kenya and Uganda teach at secondary and tertiary level mainly in English, close to South Sudan's own English-medium system, while Ethiopian universities teach primarily in English at tertiary level despite other languages being more common in secondary schooling in many regions. Confirm the language of instruction for your specific program before enrolling, since a mismatch affects your first-year performance more than most other factors.