LONDON: Inaction is no longer an option for millions of internally displaced people around the world, a report by a high-level panel formally submitted to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday.
The study, presented to Guterres by panel co-chairs Donald Kaberuka and Federica Mogherini, pushed for regionally and internationally-driven solutions for the more than 55 million people displaced within their own countries.
During an opening address, Guterres highlighted the plight of internally displaced people (IDPs) and how the solutions needed to solve their issue differed when compared to resolving the crisis of 26 million global refugees.
He outlined the report’s mandate to identify achievable recommendations on how to better prevent, respond and achieve solutions to the IDP crisis, and the need for new strategies and policies to do so.
“For several decades, the number of IDPs around the world has been growing, reaching record highs year after year,” he said. “Humanitarian assistance is vital to help them survive, but more is needed to restore a sense of normalcy and provide solutions,” he added.
“Shining a Light on Internal Displacement: A Vision for the Future” urges governments and states to take a “development-oriented approach” to solutions for citizens and residents displaced by violence, conflicts, disasters and the impacts of climate change.
Guterres said, unlike refugees, IDPS remain citizens with rights, the same as any other citizens within a country, and that states have a “responsibility” to address their plight.
“It is in the best interest of governments to own this issue, because they cannot achieve sustainable development goals without improving the lives of all IDPs, from displaced women and children to older persons,” said panel co-chair Kaberuka.
His co-chair, Federica Mogherini, said: “Given the current state of conflicts and trajectory of urbanization and climate change, the time to act is now, maintaining the status quo is not an option.”
The panel’s formation and subsequent work began after 57 UN member states called in May 2019 on Guterres to establish an independent, high-level panel to examine the world’s internal displacement crisis.
The states, which included countries from every region of the world and those affected by displacement from a range of causes, expressed concern that “international attention to internal displacement has been insuffcient in comparison with the rising needs.”
The new report lamented this “collective failure” to tackle internal displacement, but also identified recommendations to bring about shifts in the approaches and practices required to end unnecessary suffering, including enhanced leadership from the UN.
To help nations overcome key barriers to solutions, the report also recommended establishing a Global Fund on Internal Displacement Solutions.
Key recommendations
– Make solutions a nationally owned, whole-of-government priority
– Political will is key and should be catalysed
– Ensure the whole of society is invested
– Make better use of the capacities of the private sector for solutions
– Make the UN fit for purpose and accountable for solutions
– Harness international financing for solutions
– Strengthen the effective use of internal displacement data
– Address the drivers of displacement and reduce displacement risks
– Strengthen the quality of protection and assistance to IDPs and host communities
– Sustain momentum and ensure robust follow-up
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