Advocacy groups anxious that the New York Declaration on Migrants and Refugees – an outcome document which contains no concrete commitments and is not legally binding – falls short of what is needed. Activists were less impressed with a United Nations -sponsored refugee summit held Monday, which kicked down the road until 2018 many hard decisions about how the global community should handle migration crises.
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There are now about 21.3 million refugees, 3.2 million asylum seekers, and 40.8 million migrants. He said, the worldwide community has to address issues like terrorism, prevent armed conflict and facilitate development which will ensure that people are not forced to flee their homeland.
“We will seek investments in a variety of sectors, among them emerging digital technology, which seems especially promising as a way to provide solutions to the particular problems that dislocated people often face”, Soros writes. “We can not avert our eyes or turn our backs”.
The president’s forum comes a day after the United Nations’ first ever summit on refugees.
It also looks to improve working opportunities for refugees who are now spending almost 20 years in exile on average.
The president is expected to announce new commitments from world leaders and business executives to assist refugees – including a vow to welcome 110,000 into the United States next year – during a special gathering on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in NY.
“You have saved the lives of migrants at sea”. But there were no major challenges to the status quo and the biggest hope the summit held out was the possibility of more fundamental change after another two years, when two global compacts – one on refugees and another on migration – are due to be adopted.
“The UN Summit gave us NY Declaration – these were nice words but what we actually need is concrete action”, she told Al Jazeera.
Still, advocacy groups have expressed overall strong support for the US -sponsored summit, saying it will achieve concrete results.
Obama said countries needed to recognize that refugees are a symptom of a wider failure, of tensions and persecutions.
“You hear all around the world the United Nations hasn’t handled the refugee crisis”.
Leaders at the summit increased commitments on resettlement, humanitarian funding, refugee education and access to work. Together, we must ensure that no refugee or migrant is left behind.
According to a USA official, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of the summit, at least 45 countries are expected to make pledges that will meet or exceed US goals of increasing humanitarian aid by $3 billion, doubling resettlement and lawful admission spots, and increasing access to education for 1 million youngsters and access to employment by 1 million.
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Following an announcement by Kenya to close the world’s largest refugee camp in Daadab, several high level meeting have taken place to discuss the way forward on the repatriation of refugees including President Uhuru Kenyatta meeting with the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon and on the sidelines of UNGA, Deputy President William Ruto meeting with him as well.
