The European Union in the Global Refugee Regime: A Political Economic Approach to the Humanitarian-Development Nexus

This project examines the role of the European Union (EU) in promoting new technologies for aid and displacement management in the global refugee regime. It presents a study of how the EU has helped mainstream the "nexus model"-a model that calls for strengthened coherence between humanitarian and development aid-as part of its

response to the so-called Syrian refugee crisis. In doing so, I explore to what extent and through what processes the nexus model has been used to navigate and promote EU political and economic interests in a multi-stakeholder environment. I take Jordan and Lebanon as two initial case studies, using discourse analysis and process-tracing to

interpret qualitative data. The project contributes to nascent scholarship in international political economy and critical refugee studies on the humanitarian-development nexus by highlighting the key role played by the EU in driving contemporary policy developments, while simultaneously showing how EU engagement is shaped by

its interactions with other key stakeholders. By situating the nexus model in a critical political economy framework, I argue that we can better understand the interests such an approach serves more broadly and how it affects refugee beneficiaries specifically. 16 Research Project Proposal At a time when over three-quarters (ca. 15.7 million) of the

global refugee population are in a protracted situation (UNHCR 2019), the nexus model has been framed as a key strategy to manage displacement. Building on previous models such as "Linking Relief, Rehabilitation, and Development" (LRRD), the nexus model can be defined as an attempt at "strengthening collaboration, coherence, and

complementarity" of humanitarian and development actions through shared involvement of public, private, and third sector actors (OECD-DAC 2020, 6). In theory, the nexus model has been framed as a "win-win" solution to refugee crises, promising to support not just refugees, but 3 / 16 also host governments, the private sector, and the

extended international community (Soederberg and Tawakkul 2020). In practice, however, scholars have noted divergent benefits, with some-like donors and private actors-reaping a higher reward than others-like refugees (Burlin 2019; Zetter 2019; Anolt and Sinatti 2018; Arar 2017). Insights from IPE scholarship can help explain the stratified

impact of the nexus model. As critical political economists have argued, the allocation of international aid should not solely be interpreted as a response to humanitarian and development needs, but also-and some would say more importantly-geopolitical and economic interests (e.g. Bermeo 2017; McLean 2014; Lundsgaarde, Breunig and

Prakash 2010; Kilby 2009). In this regard, previous studies on the humanitarian-development nexus have highlighted the important role of the EU in contributing to the design and implementation of the nexus model, particularly in forced displacement contexts (Burlin 2019; Anholt and Sinatti 2018). EU engagement with the nexus approach has

taken multiple forms, including the adoption of policy frameworks such as the 2016 EU-Jordan Compact, the 2016 EU-Lebanon Compact, and the 2018 Ethiopia Job Compact, as well as through the development of financial instruments like the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis and the EU Emergency Trust Fund for

Africa. Overall, the EU has described the nexus approach as "a shared vision in the EU" (ECHO 2020). Against this backdrop, this project thus asks: how has EU engagement influenced the design and implementation of the nexus model? In answering this question, I will explore how the nexus approach has been used to navigate and

promote EU political and economic interests.