The Value of Refugees: UNHCR and the Growth of the Global Refugee Industry

Human movement from conflict and the desire for different livelihoods have been abiding features of most social orders. Yet, the categorization of people as refugees and specific international refugee laws and welfare programmes is a recent endeavour. This article looks at the key factors driving the international refugee regime’s expansion. It argues that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has played a central role in this regard, advancing categorizations of displaced persons in refugee terms to ensure its survival and growth over the years. By tracing the historical development of the refugee regime, we can better understand how the control of human movement has become constituted in ways that foster organizational growth and geopolitical legitimacy, under the authority of humanitarianism.