Geneva (ILO News): A panel discussion, bringing together representatives from the ILO, IFC, UNHCR, UNICEF, the World Bank and the Ministry of Foreign of Affairs (MFA) of the Netherlands, highlighted the importance of promoting social cohesion and peaceful coexistence as part of joint efforts under PROSPECTS, a global partnership, which seeks to devise approaches for inclusive job creation, education and protection for displaced and host communities.

Co-hosted by the ILO and the Netherlands MFA, the discussion was part of a series of virtual events held during the Geneva Peace Week, which is a leading annual forum in the international peacebuilding calendar, and the flagship event of the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform. This year’s theme focused on “Rebuilding trust after disruption: Pathways to reset international cooperation,” in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has further exacerbated challenges faced by forcibly displaced persons and vulnerable host communities.

The discussions centered around the PROSPECTS partnership and its approach to finding durable solutions for refugees and the communities that host them through dignified, inclusive and comprehensive programmes, contributing to peaceful coexistence and social cohesion.

Panellists from the five organizations working jointly under PROSPECTS, as well as the Netherlands, the donor to the partnership, presented global and country level initiatives being carried out by each of the partners that contribute to inclusive development and social cohesion.

Discussions highlighted challenges as well as opportunities and good practices in the various displacement contexts and countries targeted under the programme, which include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Sudan and Uganda.

Ms Ana Uzelac, Lead Adviser of PROSPECTS from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, introduced the partnership, which is spearheaded by the Government of the Netherlands, and its focus on the need for displaced persons and host communities to enjoy enhanced economic opportunities and for children on the move to have effective and inclusive access to protection and education. The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified challenges and specific vulnerabilities faced by forcibly displaced persons, as well as the challenges of host communities to pursue their own development efforts in an environment that has been transformed by a large influx of newcomers and the pandemic. The crisis, Ms Uzelac explained, could further aggravate grievances, discrimination and mistrust among communities: “The arrival of a massive amount of people does affect labour markets, education and services and can have detrimental consequences.”

Ms Tine Staermose-Special Adviser to the Deputy Director General for Policy Strong>outlined ILO’s mandate in the PROSPECTS partnership and the role of decent work in promoting social cohesion and peaceful coexistence among refugees and host communities, particularly during the COVID-19 crisis. Ms Staermose presented the ILO policy framework, articulated around two major instruments: the Guiding principles on the access of refugees, and other forcibly displaced persons to the labour market and Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience Recommendation, 2017 (No. 205):
Ms Staermose highlighted an example from Ethiopia, where the ILO, together with INTERPEACE, is planning to conduct a participatory conflict and social cohesion analysis and diagnostic to identify initiatives to address conflict drivers and promote social cohesion. She also presented examples from ILO’s PROSPECTS work in Jordan and Lebanon, where the ILO has promoted joint small enterprise ventures and cooperatives between Syrian refugees and host communities to foster contact between communities, and empower women to become income earners. In these two countries, as well as in Ethiopia, the ILO addresses short-term needs of refugees, internally displaced populations and host communities through its Employment Intensive Investment Programmes (EIIP), and creates the environment for development in rural or marginalized areas. Short-term emergency public works schemes contribute to mitigate the socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 crisis by creating immediate job opportunities.

Mr Michel Botzung, Manager, Fragile and Conflict-Affected Situations (Africa Unit) for the International Finance Corporation, shared concrete examples of IFC’s work in Kenya to illustrate how private sector development contributes to social cohesion in Kakuma refugee camp in northern Kenya. IFC’s approach includes two key elements: applying a “market-based approach” and considering refugees and host communities as one single group of economic actors for whom IFC can provide joint opportunities in the entrepreneurial space. Mr Botzung added that these two groups may trigger interest and investment of the vibrant private sector in Kenya. Through the establishment and the rollout of the Kakuma Kalobeyei Challenge Fund, the IFC provides the opportunity for host community and refugee-based small businesses to benefit from additional financing and support, enabling them to grow their businesses and market opportunities. Mr Botzung called for certain constraints to be removed:

Mr Alessio Baldaccini, Associate Education Officer at UNHCR, presented a peacebuilding project with refugee youth from South Sudan under the PROSPECTS partnership. UNHCR conducted in-depth anthropological research on the situation of refugee youth from South Sudan in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Sudan. These countries are host to a staggering 2.1 million South Sudanese refugees, 65 per cent of whom are under the age of eighteen. Mr Baldaccini explained that the research showed that, after independence, South Sudanese youth suffered from lack of education and economic opportunities and displayed high levels of mental and psychosocial distress. Ethnic, tribal and clan identities are exploited to perpetuate cycles of conflict and division. This extends to young refugees across all countries of asylum and the camps and settlements within them and presents a major protection challenge and impediment to social cohesion and socio-economic wellbeing. Consequently, UNHCR is developing a regional peacebuilding and leadership programme, which aims to increase the capacity of refugee and host community youth to contribute to peaceful coexistence among ethnic groups and become agents of positive change in countries of asylum and upon return:

Dr Leila Hanafi, Programme Manager, PROSPECTS Partnership Global Programme at the World Bank, shared examples of a cross-sectoral response to promote social cohesion in Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq. Dr Hanafi highlighted that the World Bank Group views the forced displacement challenge in the Mashreq (which includes Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq) as a corporate priority, focusing on the associated specific vulnerabilities, mitigating their impacts on their host communities and working to promote human development, economic opportunities and basic services, as well as partnering for a more coordinated development response. Given the contextual complexities and the continuing evolution of the crisis, the World Bank has embarked on the preparation of a development-focused regional Mashreq Displacement Response Framework (MDRF) through the support of PROSPECTS, with the main objective to reduce poverty and address the vulnerabilities of displaced populations and host communities: The World Bank has accumulated extensive experience in responding to crises involving forced displacement and the MDRF highlights key features of successful strategies for investing in social cohesion. Dr Hanafi illustrated the World Bank’s engagement by sharing the example of the local service provision to displaced populations made through building horizontal social cohesion between displaced and host communities, while continuing to address vertical social cohesion between communities and service providers.

Ms Verena Knaus, Chief, Migration and Displacement at UNICEF, shared various examples of innovative solutions for youth to leverage their talents and build skills that also contribute to social cohesion. UNICEF activities are based on the premise that talent is universal, but opportunity is not: “Refugee and migrant youth in particular represent a pool of untapped talent. Or as we sometimes say - diamonds in the rough.”

Current digital innovation efforts are often not accessible to marginalised communities or youth on the move. School closures and the effects of COVID-related lockdown measures have further disrupted access to learning opportunities, wiped out livelihoods and exposed the digital divide. Before COVID-19, refugee children were already five times more likely to be out of school, Ms Knaus explained. Only 24 per cent of refugee children attended secondary school. Now, the situation has been aggravated as many countries closed borders. According to reports by UNICEF teams, the majority of countries surveyed have witnessed an increase in tensions and discrimination, especially among populations on the move. Investing in education, learning and earning pathways is therefore central to efforts to achieve social cohesion. In this context, UNICEF launched the Reimagine Education initiative to connect 3.5 billion children and young people by 2030 to digital solutions that offer personalised learning. The support of private sector is key in this initiative to lower the cost of digital devices so that digital content is available in every school and in every camp.

On the occasion of World Children’s Day 2020, UNICEF also launched the #ReImagineYourFuture challenge, an invitation and an opportunity for young people, in particular youth on the move, to join and to rethink their own futures and recalibrate their aspirations. These are aligned with efforts to engage young people more meaningfully in responses to the impact of COVID-19 (COVID-19 Design Innovation Challenge), which is in turn linked to the Youth Agency Market Place (YOMA) which enables young people to complete social impact tasks and challenges: “YOMA is an ecosystem to provide better, more diverse and tailored offers of learning and earning opportunities for youth, including for those who are excluded from labour markets, from education systems and whose education pathways have been disrupted.”

The role of partnerships in reinforcing social cohesion

In pulling the threads together of the work of the PROSPECTS partners to address social cohesion, Ms Uzelac highlighted the importance of inclusive approaches for peaceful coexistence. She underlined the ILO’s rights-based approach and the importance of giving voice to refugees and host communities as illustrated by UNHCR’s intervention. The IFC also demonstrated that working with non-traditional actors, such as the private sector, can help establish an appropriate conflict sensitive approach. As underlined by the UNICEF, it is vital to tap into the potential of young people in this endeavour and innovative solutions must be found for them to leverage their talents, build skills, explore pathways for learning and earning and address the challenges faced in their communities. Given the contextual complexities and the continuing evolution of crises, the World Bank, which embarked on the preparation of a development-focused regional displacement response framework through PROSPECTS support, highlighted the need for context specific and conflict sensitive approaches. In conclusion, she explained: