“We, as western Kurdistan [Rojava] refugees have many families here in Waar City who live in rental houses. They work and part of them live in rental houses,” said Bahroz Abdulkarim, a refugee from Rojava who has been living in the Kurdistan Region for five years.
According to Duhok Province Human Affairs Board, more than 647,000 refugees and IDPs live in Duhok province, of which 26,000 live in rental houses.
Many of them have started own businesses.
“Many of them have started working and own business,” Salim Saeed, head of public relations at the Human Affairs Board, told Rudaw. “They did not want to live in camps.”
Officials have not taken measures against those who prefer to leave the camps as conflicts in their home regions continue.
“If someone wanted to live in a camp we would not prevent them if they have registered themselves legally,” Saeed said.
In some cases, his office has helped people find work.
The over half a million refugees and IDPs in Duhok have put a strain on the province’s basic services such as electricity and water, as well as the education and health sectors.
“The government shoulders a heavy burden regarding electricity, education, water, and [other] services,” said Dr. Rebar Fatah, dean of the faculty of administration and economy at Duhok University, asserted.
He however believes that hosting this number of refugees and IDPs is “good for the market.”
Since 2013, more than 23 camps have been set up in Duhok province to house the refugees fleeing war in Syria and displaced Iraqis.
The Kurdistan Region is hosting nearly 275,000 refugees, the majority of whom are from Syria, and 1.19 million displaced Iraqis, as of the end of 2017.
