December 6, 2021 (Nairobi, Kenya): IGAD, in collaboration with EAC and UNHCR’s Regional Bureau for the East, Horn, and the Great Lakes co-convened a Regional Protection and Solutions Dialogue for the East and Horn of Africa at the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya on 6th and 7th of December 2021. The Dialogue brought together representatives of 10 member and Partner States of the EAC and IGAD, including: Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda. Participants included Ministers, Refugee Commissioners and national and international refugee protection and solution experts. The African Union Commission (AUC) and the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) were also represented. The Dialogue facilitated the exchange of good practices on refugee management and operationalization of solutions among IGAD and EAC Member and Partner States. The Dialogue showcased the emergence of regional frameworks for protection and solutions, underpinned by EAC and IGAD community laws. The Dialogue was structured around five main themes: access to asylum, refugee inclusion into national systems, with a focus on access to labour markets; protecting refugee women children and youth; solutions; and preparedness and mitigation of environmental impact on refugee settings. States shared progress on implementation of their 2019 Global Refugee Forum (GRF) pledges to inform preparations for the High-Level Officials Meeting (HLoM) to be held on the 14-15 December 2021. The Dialogue called for the development of refugee management policies operationalizing Global Refugee Forum pledges made by member states to enhance protection and solutions for refugees and eradicate statelessness. Thematic plenary sessions concluded with a side event for the pre-launch of a study on statelessness in the Horn of Africa.
Statements of good practices and recommendations from the meeting are contained in the below outcome document form the meeting.”
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