Among the humanitarian community, there is a growing realisation on the importance to finding ways to support local solutions for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Syria. This is dependent on whether conditions are conducive for local integration and tensions between host and displaced communities can be mitigated.
The Durable Solutions Platform (DSP) organised a seminar titled ‘Addressing Protracted Internal Displacement in Syria’ in Amman on July 5th, 2018, with the objective to increase understanding on how programming and advocacy can support IDPs in Syria. The seminar brought together over 70 people from civil society, UN agencies, donors, think tanks and academia interested in and working on internal displacement in Syria.
Professor Walter Kälin from the University of Bern in Switzerland kicked off with a key note on understanding and addressing protracted displacement, drawing on examples from Colombia and Somalia. Following the key note, a panel of experts discussed internal displacement trends and drivers for forced and secondary internal displacement in Syria..
The panel also discussed different ways to support IDPs’ achievement of local solutions and the mitigation of tensions between host and displaced communities inside Syria After a Q&A for the panelists, participants split into two break-out groups to discuss how to develop the evidence base on internal displacement to address protracted displacement in Syria and how to improving the humanitarian response to internal displacement through programming and advocacy. Researchers and representatives from UN agencies and civil society provided input for the discussions. For more information on this seminar, feel free to contact us under the “About us” page.
