High-Level Officials Meeting 2021
High-Level Officials Meeting 2021
High Commissioner Filippo Grandi confers with Swiss co-host Anne De Riedmatten, Head of Humanitarian Affairs at the Swiss Mission to international organizations, before the start of the of the second day of the High-Level Officials Meeting, 2021.
Priorities for the High-Level Officials Meeting in 2021 included:
- Expanding support for refugees and the countries who receive them;
- Advancing implementation of the pledges made at the first Global Refugee Forum;
- Directing efforts to the areas in need of further support.
Participants identified progress, challenges and where further engagement might be needed to increase support, self-reliance, and access to solutions for refugees, while also taking into consideration the challenges posed by the pandemic.
The High-Level Officials Meeting in 2021:
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Took stock of efforts towards easing the pressure on countries hosting the largest populations of refugees, including through support for additional instruments and programmes for refugees and host communities. This support was reiterated as also crucial for the national arrangements and refugee responses that are coordinated across government sectors and other stakeholder groups, which are central to the approach set out in the GCR.
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Considered the extent to which refugees have been able to achieve self-reliance and how they and their host communities are faring economically. It reinforced that self-reliance requires that refugees have access to jobs, livelihoods, and educational opportunities and that they are included in national systems. This enables them to participate in the social and economic life of their host communities and contribute to rebuilding their countries should they be able to return.
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Recognized that many endeavours to facilitate solutions have been delayed by travel and other restrictions during the pandemic. The HLOM offered an opportunity to review where efforts have continued or been adapted and what more is needed both to advance third-country solutions addressed in the three-year strategy on resettlement and complementary pathways and to support conditions in countries of origin for sustainable voluntary return in safety and dignity.
Outcomes of the High-Level Officials Meeting 2021
Alongside an additional 58 pledges and commitments announced at the High-Level Officials Meeting 2021, several innovative initiatives in areas of environment sustainability in climate-vulnerable refugee situations, private sector solutions, and education, were also launched. Reviewing progress and identifying challenges, and areas in need of support, the HLOM in 2021 culminated in 20 recommendations that shaped the substance and implementation of both ongoing and future pledges and guided the key step towards building the long-term framework set out in the GCR.
