Action Agenda

The Action Agenda emphasized the RCs role as the UN’s lead on solutions at the country level, requesting UN agencies and entities to offer full collaboration, expertise, and assistance to RCs at country, regional and global level. In October 2022, a joint meeting took place between the Steering Group and RCs of the pilot countries. In May 2023, the Secretary-General held a virtual meeting with the RCs of the pilot countries, to offer support and guidance. OSA and DCO have ongoing regular and strong engagement with the RCs in priority countries on the solutions agenda.

A ‘UN Solutions Advisers Deployment Facility on Strengthening UN and National Capacities for Solutions to Internal Displacement’ administered by UNDP was established in October 2022, drawing from prior experience that dedicated (time-bound) capacity within the RC’s office has been instrumental to coordinate and advance solutions work at the country level. So far, funds have been committed for Solutions Advisers through this and other mechanisms for all pilot countries, apart from Vanuatu. Support for Solutions Advisers has been provided through contributions from France, the EU, the UK, Norway and Switzerland.

An updated repository of existing guidance, tools and best practices related to Solutions has been added to the UNSDG Knowledge Portal Page on People on the Move. This will be used for knowledge management to ensure access to a comprehensive and continuously updated set of resources, policies guidance and best practices on solutions to displacement for RCs and UNCTs.

12 UN agencies across the humanitarian, development and peace spectrum have committed to review their work on internal displacement and solutions and reinforce internal capacities and engagement on solutions via a series of entity-specific ‘institutional plans’. Eight plans have been completed – DCO, FAO, IOM, UNDP, UN-Habitat, UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP - and four more are underway – DPPA, ILO, OCHA and OHCHR. A number of agencies have integrated solutions to internal displacement in their corporate strategic policies and documents, eg. UNHCR’s Strategic Directions 2022 – 2026, and OCHA’s Strategic Priorities 2023 - 2026. The actionable commitments from these plans and strategies will contribute to the shift and elevated attention to internal displacement. The Special Adviser convened a meeting in October 2023 for organizations with institutional plans to consider how they can fit together to reflect a coherent UN approach to this issue.

The Leaving No One Behind – Internal Displacement Solutions Fund was launched in August 2023, to serve as a source of catalytic funding for solutions-focused programming identified by UN Country Teams. So far, nine joint programmes have been approved for funds from the IDSF. The stand-alone fund is hosted by the Multi-Purpose Trust Fund office, with a governance structure composed of Steering Group members and donors. Germany, Norway and Switzerland have so far committed USD 14.1 million to the Fund, with more donors expressing interest.

The Special Adviser has held strategic dialogues with International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to advocate for internal displacement solutions to feature more prominently in their institutional strategies, data and analytics and investments. Several high-level meetings have taken place with the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, IMF, Inter-American Development Bank and African Development Bank, including a meeting with members of the WB Board of Executive Directors in July. Following a high-level meeting with the African Development Bank in July, a roadmap is being developed with the African Development Bank to identify entry points for IDPs in programming; enhanced data and analytics; and to build awareness and capacity within the Bank. The OSA has a dedicated Development Finance expert who in addition to supporting global strategic engagement, has commenced work towards costing solutions strategies within the pilot countries, with a support mission already completed to Colombia, and Iraq.

The Office has also convened a Development Finance Expert Coordination Group, bringing together development finance stakeholders to support better strategies and coordination for programming and ultimately financing for solutions. The Group membership includes bilateral agencies, multilateral and national development banks, private sector, UN agencies and IFIs. It will consider policy approaches, and also adopt a practical country-focused approach targeting the initial 15 pilot countries.

In March 2023, the Data for Solutions to Internal Displacement working group completed its task under commitment 13 and shared a proposal to address gaps, standardize analysis approaches, and increase national ownership of data for solutions. The proposed framework will be tested in the pilot countries to reach a final agreed model by the end of 2024.

Training modules on prevention and internal displacement for UN and partner staff are being developed, including as part of the UNDP Prevention Academy. UNDP and OHCHR are also working together to identify a selection of countries where internal displacement can feature within country dialogues taking place as part of the SG’s Call to Action for Human Rights.

Work is underway to ensure that displacement is addressed more systematically as part of climate work. A consortium of agencies led by IOM, with engagement of DPO, DPPA, IOM, OCHA, UNDP, UNOPS, UNICEF, UNEP, UNDRR, UNFCCC, UNHCR and WFP have developed unified and coordinated UN messaging and advocacy on climate-related displacement, to amplify in broader climate work, which will be used to advocate at key events, to support RC work at country level, and to share with donors.

The Special Adviser and his team have participated in key events to highlight climate-internal displacement issues, including the Glasgow Dialogue, the Climate and Human Mobility thematic event of the Global Forum on Migration and Development, and on the sidelines of the meeting of the Transitional Committee on Loss and Damages. Joint planning and preparation is taking place for COP28 including a pavilion on climate and mobility, coordinated by IOM. An advocacy paper related to the USD 100 billion climate finance commitment to support developing countries on adaptation and disaster is close to finalization, highlighting internal displacement. Key messages on displacement prevention will also be developed to incorporate in broader advocacy efforts being led by the Inter-Agency Standing Committee. Research is also underway to assess the implementation of the UNFCCC Task Force on Displacement recommendations in the 15 Action Agenda pilot countries. Advocacy with pilot countries is also taking place to integrate displacement risk into National Adaptation Plans.

In May 2023 the Political Declaration of the midterm review of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction calls upon States to strengthen comprehensive disaster risk governance, highlighting the specific risk of disaster displacement.

Under the leadership of UNDRR, DRR actors are promoting more holistic understanding of displacement and risk intersections. In March 2023, UN entities engaged in the UN Plan of Action on Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience agreed that internal displacement will feature in related mandatory reporting processes. UN entities will report annually on how they apply the Action Agenda commitments related to the Sendai framework in their progammes, including technical and policy support being provided to countries on disaster risk and displacement.

A new tracking system to record and analyze hazardous events and disaster loss and damages is due to be launched in November 2023 by UNDRR, WMO and UNDP. The system is being developed in consultation with IOM and IDMC to integrate data and displacement related indicators. The system of standard metrics and indicators will support state capacity to collect, report and analyze disaster displacement impacts linked to Sendai Framework reporting. It will also enhance understanding of displacement and risk intersection, including with conflict and the impacts of climate change.

A mapping and analysis has commenced of human mobility-related provisions within disaster risk reduction (DRR) laws, strategies and policies at national and regional and levels, to offer good practice, and provide guidance to states in a partnership including UNHCR, UNHDRR, the Platform on Disaster Displacement (PDD), IOM, UNDP and others.

In collaboration with partners, UNDRR will be piloting a scorecard of displacement indicators to support local governments to identify gaps in their disaster displacement policies and programmes in Kenya and Iraq. IOM and UNDRR have already piloted the scorecard in Trinidad and Tobago (Port of Spain) in May 2022 and in Brazil (Recife) in April 2023. To ensure continued dissemination of the NRC, PDD and UNDRR-developed ‘Words into Action’ guidance on disaster displacement through the guide, checklist and eLearning course, a Training of Trainers is being developed and will be rolled out from the end of October.

Advocacy, data and guidance on disaster displacement is being integrated within the framework of the Early Warnings for All initiative (EW4ALL), to scale up the inclusion of internal displacement in early action frameworks in EW4ALL and Action Agenda pilot countries. Displacement will feature as a key theme within the new Risk Knowledge Handbook being developed for EW4ALL by the CIMA Foundation, and in the 2023 report on the global status of multi-hazard early warning systems to be launched at COP28.

Since January 2022, new national, sub-national laws, policies and strategies providing protection and assistance to IDPs have been passed in the Philippines, Mexico, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Honduras and Chad. A detailed report launched in late 2022 by UNHCR in collaboration with the Global Protection Cluster showcased 113 IDP specific instruments in 46 countries and additional instruments at national and sub-national level. To support knowledge sharing between States on implementing laws and policies on internal displacement UNHCR and the Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally displaced Persons convened a peer-to-peer Cross-Regional Forum at the International Institute of Humanitarian Law in June 2023.

The 25th anniversary of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement offered the opportunity in April 2023 to raise attention to the rights of IDPs through a call to action to end the curse of internal displacement by the Special Rapporteur and the Special Adviser on Solutions to Internal Displacement. The Special Rapporteur also called attention to the issue during a global event hosted with UNHCR and the Global Protection Cluster, and members of the IDP Protection Expert Group (IPEG). In ongoing work to advocate with states for better protection and assistance for IDPs, the outgoing Special Rapporteur completed country visits to Japan and Mexico in 2022, before handing over to the new Special Rapporteur who has issued numerous communications in 2023 addressing IDP human rights issues.

The IASC review of humanitarian response to internal displacement is close to finalization, with country visits completed in DRC, Ethiopia, Honduras, Mozambique, Nigeria and Yemen. A final report is on track for the start of 2024. The review is re-visiting current approaches and will in its final recommendations address several questions relating to the Action Agenda including enhanced participation, inclusion in national systems, localization, financing, and laying foundations for solutions earlier in the response.