The Digital Livelihoods Report 2024

Honest Data from the People Living It

The Digital Livelihoods Report is UWA's annual attempt to answer a simple question: what does it actually look like for a refugee in Uganda to earn income online? Not what platforms promise. Not what policy documents say. What actually happens.

In 2024, we surveyed 342 refugees across Kampala, Nakivale, and Kiryandongo. We tested 12 digital platforms. We followed 18 UWA programme graduates over six months as they attempted to build freelance income. This is what we found.

Published April 2025. Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0. Cite as: Up With Africa (2025). The Digital Livelihoods Report 2024. Kampala: UWA.

Contents

1. Executive Summary
2. Who We Surveyed — Methodology
3. Online Income: Who Is Earning and How
4. Platform Accessibility Audit — 12 Platforms Tested
5. Payment Corridors: What Works and What Fails
6. Legal and Documentation Barriers
7. Connectivity and Device Access
8. Six-Month Cohort Study: 18 UWA Graduates
9. Recommendations for Platforms, Policymakers, and NGOs
10. Appendix: Survey Instrument & Raw Data

Finding 1: Most Are Trying, Few Are Getting Paid Reliably

68% of surveyed refugees reported attempting to earn income online in 2024. Of those, only 29% received payments reliably (defined as: money received within 14 days of completing work, without payment failure). The gap is almost entirely explained by payment infrastructure — not skill.

Finding 2: The Payment Corridor Problem Is Getting Worse

In 2023, 6 of 12 tested payment platforms worked adequately for refugees. In 2024, only 4 did. Wise exited Uganda entirely. PayPal tightened withdrawal restrictions. The trend is toward less access, not more — despite increased skills investment in the refugee population.

Finding 3: MTN Mobile Money Is the De-Facto Payment Rail

71% of refugees who received freelance income used MTN Mobile Money as their primary receipt method in 2024. It's not ideal — per-transaction fees add up and international clients find it unfamiliar — but it works. Policies that restrict platform payouts to mobile money would have an outsized positive impact.

Finding 4: UWA Graduates Outperform Control Group by 3×

In the 6-month cohort study, UWA programme graduates were 3.2× more likely to secure paid remote work compared to a matched control group with equivalent skills. The differentiating factor: knowledge of legal rights, platform navigation skills, and community support — not technical ability alone.