Corruption at UNHCR refugee camps: Can it be tackled?

• Main Authors: PORTELA, Clara, NAIR, Dileep
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2021
• Subjects: Organisational behaviour; Human resources management; Risk management; Cross-cultural management; Corporate governance; International relations; International Relations
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cases_coll_all/377; https://smu.sharepoint.com/sites/admin/CMP/cases/SMU-20-BATCH%20%5BPDF-Pic%5D/SMU-20-0051%20%5BUN%20Camps%5D/SMU-20-0051%20%5BUN%20Camps%5D.pdf?CT=1615439941942&OR=ItemsView
• Institution: Singapore Management University

The Inspector-General of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Fatma Özdamar, receives two highly distressing pieces of news concerning the UNHCR-administered refugee camps in Lundya. The first is an anonymous letter detailing rampant levels of corruption at the camps, including fraud and abuse by UNHCR officials. To make things worse, a key UNHCR donor country informed her that its Ambassador in Lundya had received a personal threat and a demand to leave the country. Investigations revealed that the note to the Ambassador had originated from employees of the Lundyan refugee camps. Thus, the donor country was threatening to withdraw its financial support to UNHCR. Having been told to prioritise the investigation of incidents involving UNHCR staff elsewhere, Inspector-General Özdamar faced hard choices on how to proceed. The case study will enable students to understand the functioning of the UN and the challenges faced by the global organisation; learn about crisis management within an international context and the dilemma in decision-making; and determine the challenges of operating in an environment characterised by weak accountability mechanisms and checks-and-balances amongst others. The case can be used in courses on management, public policy, good governance and the fight against corruption, or international politics.