Meaningful participation of forcibly displaced and stateless persons in the Global Refugee Forum 2023
Meaningful participation of forcibly displaced and stateless persons in the Global Refugee Forum 2023
This report on the participation of forcibly displaced and stateless persons in the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) 2023 highlights significant achievements in promoting meaningful participation before, during, and after the world’s largest gathering on issues of forced displacement. The GRF 2023 saw diverse groups of participants including 70 refugee experts, the Advisory Board of Organizations led by Forcibly Displaced and Stateless Persons, delegations from 50 organizations led by forcibly displaced and stateless persons, refugee students, and journalism mentees, among others. Participation in GRF processes commenced in June 2023 and included engagement in thematic or regional GCR multi-stakeholder pledges and initiatives based on participants’ areas of expertise, review of key documents, co-organizing high-level parallel events, inputting to the GRF programme, and various online preparatory training opportunities.
At the GRF itself, at least 320 forcibly displaced and stateless persons participated, representing 8% of the total number of 4200 registered participants. In comparison, at the first GRF in 2019, around 70 displaced and stateless participants were present, amounting to less than 3% of all 3000 participants. The presence of the 320 displaced and stateless leaders was felt across the GRF 2023 programme, including through the Joint Refugee Statement, announcements of multi-stakeholder pledges in plenary, speaking engagements in high-level parallel events or linked events, presentations of good practices in the Speakers' Corner, a high-level closing ceremony with the High Commissioner, various networking opportunities, and much more.
