Turning the Tide on Internal Displacement: a Development Approach to Solutions

Our world is facing a global crisis of internal displacement. Over 59 million people remained forcibly displaced within their own countries at the end of 2021 due to conflict, violence, disasters, and climate change – an all-time high. That was before the war in Ukraine, where 6.5 million people are now estimated to be internally displaced.

Internally displaced persons (IDPs) can live for years without adequate access to basic services, social protection, and decent work, unable to exercise their full rights as citizens and be agents of progress for their communities. The marginalization of IDPs hinders long-term peace, stability, and recovery, and constitutes a major obstacle to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This new report, produced by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with the collaboration of the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), argues that in tandem with critical humanitarian assistance, there is a need to place a renewed emphasis on development as the only way to provide sustainable solutions to internal displacement and build pathways towards peace and stability. This is in line with the recommendations issued by the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel Report on Internal Displacement and a key tenet of the UN Secretary-General’s Action Agenda on Internal Displacement.

The report calls for countries to take political, social, and economic measures to ensure that IDPs can exercise their full rights as citizens, including in political processes. This renewed social contract should ensure the safety of IDPs as well as their access to healthcare, education, decent jobs, and social protection. Restoring the rule of law, improving security and justice, and guaranteeing the housing, land, and property rights of IDPs are also critical. It highlights how socio-economic integration and recovery measures should be tailored to vulnerable groups, including women and girls, ethnic or religious minorities, and persons with disabilities. Finally, the report provides recommendations for better data and analytics to inform decision-making and measure progress made towards solutions.

We call for countries to champion the cause of IDPs and for international partners to support such efforts. That solidarity involves co-investing in the tried-and-trusted international architecture that countries depend on to emerge from conflict and crisis. Just as no one is immune to forced displacement, no one can solve it alone.

Source: UN Development Programme