Global Refugee Forum delivers unity and action amid global crises

The Global Refugee Forum 2023 closed on Friday with UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi praising the "determined unity” shown by participants who – in the face of global division and crises – pledged transformative action on behalf of refugees and the countries hosting them.

In his closing statement, Grandi issued a sombre reminder that several “grim milestones” had been reached during the three days of the Forum, from scores of civilian deaths in Gaza to fresh displacement driven by conflict and violence in Sudan and Myanmar.

The 2023 GRF came as the global refugee population has reached a record level of 36.4 million, out of a total population of the forcibly displaced of 114 million people.

"Against this very challenging backdrop, the easy thing would have been for you to retreat and step back from international commitments,” Grandi said. “But you did not. Instead, you came in full force and spent three days here exemplifying determined unity!”

Grandi hailed the efforts of States, the private sector, NGOs, refugee-led organizations, faith-based groups, academics and others, who announced pledges and contributions in support of the forcibly displaced and stateless people, and debated policies, exchanged ideas and explored new solutions for refugees and their hosts.

Their efforts resulted in more than 1,600 new pledges of financial, material, policy and other forms of support, including 43 costed multi-partner pledges co-led by governments and other partners. These included commitments to:

• resettle 1 million refugees by 2030 and provide alternative pathways to third countries for 3 million more;
• provide 1 million hours of pro bono legal and consulting services over four years;
• offer places on work and educational mobility schemes to 200,000 refugees;
• support more than 1 million refugees and their hosts through economic and social inclusion initiatives.

Initial estimates indicate that over $2.2 billion in financial commitments were pledged for the coming years, including $250 million by private companies and foundations. Further bilateral and multilateral development funding instruments for refugee hosting countries were also announced.

• See also: Global forum closes with over $2.2bn in pledges to improve lives of refugees and hosts

Over 4,200 delegates attended the Forum in person. The total included over 300 refugee delegates from around the world, more than four times the number that attended the first GRF in 2019. Thousands more followed proceedings online, tuning in to the livestreamed Plenary sessions and side events.

UNHCR and Switzerland co-hosted the event, with five countries – Colombia, France, Japan, Jordan and Uganda – acting as co-convenors.

Towards the end of the Forum, Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, told delegates it was clear they had taken the GRF’s theme of “action, unity and impact” to heart.

“Protection and help for refugees should not be a lottery, or a disproportionate burden that falls on a few countries and communities based on their geographic location. It is an obligation shared by all of humanity,” said Guterres, speaking by video link from New York. “By rallying around the needs of refugees at this Forum, you are all providing a bright burst of light in what has been a dark and troubling year.”              

Grandi reserved special thanks for the refugee delegates who attended and participated throughout the Forum. 

“Your articulate interventions reminded us what you’ve experienced and gone through, forced us to confront what refugees need, but also – and most importantly – allowed us to be inspired by what you bring,” he said. “And what I heard was that, yes, humanitarian assistance is imperative if we are to help, but what you really crave is opportunity. To be included."                      

Earlier in the Forum, Evode Hakizimana, a refugee of Burundian origin living in Zimbabwe, said: “Yes, we do need hope. But the one thing we need more than hope is action. Because once we start to act, hope is everywhere.”