Displaced and Refugee Youth Advisory Team at World University Service of Canada

Background

In 2020, Mastercard Foundation developed and adopted a new refugee framework to support programming that strengthens the resilience of refugees and displaced young people, their host communities, and the institutions which support them in their educational journey and transition into employment.  This strategy builds upon the Foundation’s Young Africa Works Strategy and the commitments to refugee inclusion pledged during the 2019 Global Refugee Forum.   

As part of these efforts, a new collaboration with WUSC  will support the Mastercard Foundation to fulfill its commitment to meaningfully include refugee and displaced young people  across the Foundation’s work.  The Displaced and Refugee youth Enabling Environment Mechanism (DREEM) is a 5-year project that will work towards greater inclusion of refugees and displaced young people across the Foundation’s programming, especially the Scholars Program and Young Africa Works Strategy in Kenya. 

In order to meet the objectives of the Foundation and ensure that DREEM activities are designed and delivered to meet the needs of refugees and displaced young people, an Advisory Team composed of individuals with lived experiences is needed to advise and provide guidance to WUSC, Mastercard Foundation, their stakeholders and program partners.  

The Advisory Team will provide guidance on three key areas of focus that are highlighted in Mastercard Foundation’s Refugee Framework:

• Inclusion in Education and Comprehensive support
• Improved access to economic opportunities
• Strengthen Institutions and Ecosystems 

As Mastercard Foundation also works to implement newly adopted refugee and displaced  young people  framework strategy, the DREEM project and Advisory Team will ensure that the design and implementation of the Foundation’s work are informed by and continue to reflect the unique perspectives of displaced and refugee youth