Uruguay: Turning pledges into meaningful change through innovation and inclusion

In a region facing unprecedented mixed movement flows, Uruguay is demonstrating that political commitments can translate into concrete action. Following the Global Refugee Forum held in 2023, the South American nation has embarked on an ambitious transformation of its refugee protection system, showing how innovation and digital modernization can drive refugee protection regardless of resource constraints.

Opening doors: labour mobility as protection

One of Uruguay's most innovative approaches involves creating multiple pathways that balance protection needs with practical realities. Beyond designing labour mobility mechanisms for skilled refugees to access employment opportunities in the Uruguayan market, the country has implemented the groundbreaking Residence Based on Rootedness Programme.

Launched in August 2024, the programme targets individuals who have built stable lives in Uruguay, who demonstrated labour, family and educational ties, entered through authorized checkpoints and maintained at least 180 days of residence. As of November 2025, an impressive 6,894 individuals had already been processed.

This represents a sophisticated understanding of durable solutions. Rather than viewing refugee protection and migration management as competing priorities, Uruguay recognizes that providing complementary legal pathways serves both humanitarian obligations and national interests. In 2006, Urugay established a Refugee Commission (CORE) that is in charge of refugee status determination in the country. The Residence Based on Rootedness Programme has helped optimize CORE's resources while ensuring that individuals with genuine connections to Uruguay can regularize their status and access rights.

The country's commitment extends to socioeconomic integration as well. Through the Ministry of Social Development's Project for Strengthening Socioeconomic Inclusion, 300 refugees, asylum-seekers, and migrants have accessed employment opportunities through job fairs, entrepreneurship support, and coordination with cooperatives. A pilot plan for training and inclusion in the gastronomy sector has created practical pathways to employment through certified kitchen training and peer support processes.

Modernizing protection: a digital leap forward

Uruguay's approach to strengthening its asylum system reflects a clear understanding that 21st-century displacement requires 21st-century solutions. CORE is undertaking a comprehensive digitalization project to create an interoperable Case Management System, harmonizing and centralizing approximately 35,000 case files while establishing an electronic repository aligned with international data protection standards. This would allow for more administrative efficiency, reduce search times, streamline case management and enhance response capacity,

This digital transformation goes beyond mere technological upgrades. By ensuring interoperability among various state databases, Uruguay is creating seamless registration and documentation systems for people forced to flee that protect refugee rights while maintaining data quality. The country has hired dedicated project managers and registration officers to build institutional capacity, while making significant progress in harmonizing statistical information with civil society partners.

The results speak for themselves. In May 2024, CORE introduced a prima facie refugee status determination mechanism that has already processed 3,982 asylum-seekers, reducing time for cases to be processed. This procedure streamlines processing through verification interviews for individuals meeting objective criteria, significantly accelerating access to permanent residence and documentation while maintaining protection safeguards.

What makes Uruguay's approach particularly noteworthy is its collaborative framework. Rather than attempting this transformation in isolation, the country is working closely with UNHCR, the Asylum Capacity Support Group, and interested donor countries, demonstrating the power of the Global Compact on Refugees in action and working towards finding better solutions for people forcibly displaced.

Building belonging: inclusion from day one

Uruguay's commitment to inclusion extends far beyond legal frameworks to address the lived reality of integration. The Migrant Reference Centre (CRM), inaugurated in 2023, has become a one-stop shop providing comprehensive assistance, having already served more than 10,000 people. The Centre brings together offices from multiple ministries, the Red Cross, UNICEF, and other agencies under one roof, offering everything from health affiliation to educational guidance and psycho-emotional care.

The Centre includes a socio-labour and digital support point managed by the Ministry of Social Development (MIDES), providing personalized employment skills strengthening, job search assistance, and access to vocational training. This integrated approach ensures that refugees and asylum-seekers receive comprehensive support rather than navigating fragmented services across multiple locations.

Beyond the CRM, other initiatives have also strengthened pathways to socio-economic inclusion. Between 2020 and 2025, Casa de la Mujer de la Unión, a non‑profit organization, in partnership with the Municipality of Montevideo and UNHCR, trained 500 participants through 20 officially certified courses, with 60% gaining access to jobs or recruitment processes related to their training. An additional 250 people obtained primary education accreditation through coordination with national education authorities.

The commitment to inclusion even extends to Uruguay's youngest residents. The Manos Veneguayas Youth Band brings together migrant, refugee, and Uruguayan children aged 9 to 18 from five nationalities, using music to foster belonging and intercultural coexistence. Through more than 10 public performances at venues including the National Auditorium, the band has become an exemplary model of social integration and active youth participation.

A model for the region and beyond

Uruguay's progress since the last Global Refugee Forum illustrates an essential truth about the Global Compact on Refugees: it works when countries commit to action. By processing individual cases through complementary pathways, digitalizing tens of thousands of case files, and creating comprehensive support infrastructure, Uruguay is showing that effective refugee protection is achievable even amid complex population movements dynamics.

For other countries facing similar challenges, Uruguay offers valuable lessons. Strong protection systems need not be expensive if designed smartly and collaboratively. Multiple legal pathways can work together to serve both protection and inclusion goals. And sustainable integration requires thinking beyond immediate reception to comprehensive, long-term support.

As the international community prepares for the next Global Refugee Forum in 2027, Uruguay stands as evidence that pledges, when backed by genuine commitment and smart design, can turn into tangible impact for refugees and host communities alike.

To find out more about Uruguay’s responses, read the compilation of Good Practices.