Measuring the GCR in preparation for 2023
Measuring the GCR in preparation for 2023
Statistical inclusion of displaced people and host communities is vital for humanitarian, peacebuilding, and development interventions and support to be coordinated and provided effectively.
The availability of accurate data and evidence is one of the three key tools identified in the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) for ensuring effective burden- and responsibility sharing:
"Reliable, comparable, and timely data is critical for evidence-based measures to: improve socio-economic conditions for refugees and host communities; assess and address the impact of large refugee populations on host countries in emergency and protracted situations; and identify and plan appropriate solutions."
GCR, para. 45
States and other stakeholders, through the GCR, also committed to promote harmonized standards for the collection, analysis, and sharing of data, including relating to age, gender, and diversity of refugees and returnees, which is vital to advancing and ensuring progress towards the GCR objectives.
A framework for effective burden- and responsibility-sharing
Through the GCR, the international community further agreed that progress towards improving the lives of displaced people and easing the pressures on host countries must be tracked, and a GCR indicator framework was developed. The GCR indicator framework provides outcomes related to the four objectives of the GCR and metrics against which to assess progress towards them.
The first GCR indicator report, based on the indicator framework, was published in 2021. It provided a benchmark of how far the international community had come since affirming the Compact, while highlighting what more needs to be done to fully realize the aims of the GCR. The report helped to guide discussions and key recommendations from the High-Level Officials Meeting (HLOM) to take stock of progress in December 2021.
In 2021, following the launch of the indicator report, governments and other stakeholders had the opportunity to share their views through an online survey of how the GCR indicator framework could be improved to support the next indicator report. The indicator framework has now been refined based on the feedback from this survey, discussions held at the HLOM, extensive collaboration with national and international GCR data stakeholders, and findings from the first GCR indicator report.
The new edition of the GCR indicator framework does not deviate from the original framework, but rather looks to improve the availability, disaggregation, and quality of data to measure progress. Four main changes have been made to the GCR indicator framework and are presented in the new edition:
- Clarification of methodologies
- Introduction of complementary metadata fields
- Revision of one GCR indicator
- Introduction of one new GCR indicator
These improvements will provide a clearer and more accurate basis for the second GCR indicator report, which will be released in November next year, to guide discussions and pledges at the Global Refugee Forum in 2023.
