Uganda, April 8 -- In the face of uncertainty surrounding the future of Kenya's biggest refugee camps, a transformative approach emerges - turning refugee camps into semi-autonomous cities that offer refugees a second chance at a more dignified life.

Last week marked three years since the Kenyan government gave the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) two weeks to decide the fate of Kenya's largest refugee camps -Dadaab and Kakuma, citing threats of insecurity from terrorist group al-Shabab, that allegedly uses it as a recruitment ground for terrorist attacks.

Last year, the Kenyan government and UNHCR announced a plan that could transform the lives of more than 600,000 refugees in an effort to convert refugee camps int...