Millions of people around the world seek refuge from violence, war, poverty, climate change, discrimination based on their ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation, or human rights violations. They leave home to start a new life. But the world is failing them. The global refugee crisis reveals that governments do not live up to the promises of the 1951 Refugee Convention. They have forgotten the spirit of generosity and commitment that fueled the world’s post-World War II promise to protect refugees and their right to return to their homes. Instead, barbed wire fences and chronic underfunding have created a global humanitarian catastrophe.
Displaced communities are often hosted in countries that are already struggling to cope with high levels of violence, insecurity, and poverty. The protracted nature of many of today’s conflicts means that these host nations will have refugee communities living alongside them for years, if not decades. The result is that host communities can only provide the bare necessities to refugees, while the burdens of caring for them fall on aid agencies and volunteers.
In a time when durable solutions like resettlement and a return to the place of origin are not readily available, it is vital to focus on local integration. The process is complex and requires significant financial resources, but it can be an opportunity for displaced people to build a life in a new country.
It is also an important step toward the goal of a global partnership that shares responsibility for protecting and assisting displaced populations. Ultimately, the world’s refugee crisis will only be resolved by ending the conflicts and persecution that force people to flee their homes.