Alexander Betts

Alexander Betts is the Leopold Muller Professor of Forced Migration and International Affairs and heads the Refugee Economies Programme at the University of Oxford. His work on the economics of refugee assistance, migration and humanitarianism has influenced thinking about refugee policy worldwide. Alex is challenging the traditional view that refugees have to be a burden to their host countries and proposes a new economic model that takes into perspective refugees’ skills and talents. He shows how freedom of movement and the right to work can help in tapping this inherent potential. In a new era of mass dislocation, he advocates a new logic of integration that builds on basic human rights and the opportunities of markets and mobility.