War, displacement, and the best location for temporary sheltering: a qualitative study

Area of Science:

• Disaster Management
• Humanitarian Studies
• Urban Planning

Background:

• Man-made disasters lead to significant population displacement and loss of homes.
• Scientific criteria are essential for effectively sheltering displaced populations and refugees.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify scientific criteria for sheltering refugees displaced by conflict.
• To analyze factors influencing the process of refugee sheltering.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative content analysis of semi-structured interviews with 20 experts and managers in Iran.
• Data analysis focused on extracting and categorizing factors affecting refugee sheltering.

Main Results:

• Identified nine key categories of factors for refugee sheltering: land type, facilities access, infrastructure access, homogeneity, security, proximity to danger, environmental, economic, and political/legal issues.
• These categories encompassed 53 subcategories and 188 distinct factors.
• Results highlight the complexity and multi-faceted nature of refugee sheltering.

Conclusions:

• Successful refugee sheltering necessitates comprehensive planning, training, culture building, and readiness promotion.
• Effective inter-organizational coordination among relief agencies and humanitarian organizations is vital.
• Addressing these identified factors is crucial for improving refugee sheltering processes and preventing associated problems.