MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th December, 2019) World leaders are failing on promises made in the wake of the 2015 migrant crisis in Europe to protect and provide for refugees, and high- and middle-income countries must do more as the situation for displaced people is becoming worse, the secretary general of a major Norwegian NGO said on Monday, as leading global figures meet in Geneva for the first ever Global Refugee Forum.
"World leaders solemnly promised with the New York Declaration that there would be better responsibility-sharing in protecting and assisting refugees and displaced. Since then, borders have closed for families seeking protection, refugee quotas slashed, and poor host countries left with little international support. The Global Refugee Forum must reverse this trend and save a refugee system on the brink of collapse," Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), said in a press release.
The NRC made reference to a number of humanitarian efforts to support refugees that are less than half funded. The lack of support is forcing a number of families to utilize dangerous coping strategies to make ends meet, such as child labor or prostitution.
"This is a rallying call to the 'missing middle.' Many large and emerging economies are neither receiving refugees nor contributing financially. They must come onboard and increase their contributions if we are to succeed," Egeland stated.
The New York Declaration for refugees and migrants was signed unanimously by UN countries on September 19, 2016. The document agreed that protecting refugees and supporting the countries that shelter them are international priorities and responsibility must be shared.
According to the United High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the number of displaced people globally is currently at a record high. Almost 71 million people have been forced to move from their homes due to violence, climate change or persecution, UNHCR stated in a June report.
Top diplomats, NGO and charity leaders, and business officials are meeting in Geneva, Switzerland at the United Nations Global Refugee Forum. The three-day forum will include discussion related to how both the private and public sectors can support refugees in areas such as education, jobs, energy and protection.
