In March 2016, the Council on Foreign Relations’ (CFR) International Institutions and Global Governance program held a workshop on the shortcomings of the institutions, financing mechanisms, and legal frameworks for managing refugee flows, delivering humanitarian assistance, and handling asylum applications, and prospects for reform. The workshop was made possible by the support of the Robina Foundation. The views described here are those of workshop participants only and not those of CFR or the Robina Foundation. The Council on Foreign Relations takes no institutional positions on policy issues and has no affiliation with the U.S. government. In addition, the suggested policy prescriptions are the views of individual participants and do not necessarily represent a consensus of the attending members.
CONFERENCE TAKEAWAYS
The global humanitarian regime is not equipped to handle an era of chronic emergencies, accelerating climate change, and revolutions in transportation and information technologies.
The architecture and financing of global humanitarian cooperation should adapt to new trends in the flows of refugees, the internally displaced, and migrants. Priorities for reform include defining the differences between migrants and refugees, addressing the needs of internally displaced populations, linking development aid and humanitarian assistance, incorporating new donors and actors into response efforts, and adopting education and employment programs that promote self-reliance among refugees.
The upcoming World Humanitarian Summit and U.S.-led high-level meeting on refugees and migrants are opportunities for achieving substantive reforms and durable financing options.