fair share

In 2018, less than 5% of people identified as needing resettlement by UNHCR were resettled – just 0.2% of the global refugee population. This paper calls for refugees to be meaningfully included in discussions and decisions about their future, and for higher-income countries to do their fair share by increasing their commitments.

A new report published by Oxfam shows that a lack of political will and a rise in xenophobia have driven a backlash against refugees in many countries, while the arrival of Syrian refugees has been delayed in some countries because of lengthy processes, security screenings, and an increasingly hostile political climate.

Oxfam is calling for the states attending the Geneva conference to collectively commit to offer a safe haven through resettlement or other forms of humanitarian admission to at least 10 percent of the refugee population – the equivalent of 481,220 people – by the end of 2016.

Rich countries have resettled only 1.39 percent of the nearly five million Syrian refugees, a fraction of the 10 percent of people who need to be urgently offered a safe haven. As wealthy states meet in Geneva on 30 March to discuss the Syria refugee crisis, Oxfam urges them to redouble their efforts and offer their ‘fair share’ of support to hundreds of thousands of refugees.

The number of people in need as a result of the conflict in Syria continues to rise. Oxfam is calling for rich states to commit to fully funding this year’s Syria crisis response appeal and to resettle 10 percent of all registered Syrian refugees by the end of 2016.

The international community is proving utterly inadequate in helping Syrians both inside and outside their country. Oxfam’s damning verdict is in a new report today Solidarity with Syrians that analyses the “fair shares” of rich and powerful countries to provide money, resettlement places for refugees and leadership to end the bloodshed.  

The announcement of $9.2 billion in pledges to the Green Climate Fund ahead of the Lima climate summit is welcome but only a bare minimum, says Oxfam.

 World leaders taking their seats at the G2O Brisbane Summit today must heed the call to pull together and act now to stop Ebola, before it’s too late.