New Zealand urged to act with world's first Global Refugee Forum underway in Geneva

The world’s first Global Refugee Forum has begun in Geneva, with organisations urging New Zealand's Government "to act" as the world sees the  highest levels of displacement on record.

The forum is seeking to cement and mobilise the  Global Compact on Refugees , aiming to ease pressure on countries taking large numbers of refugees, enhance refugee self-reliance and support people who are able to return to their original country safely. 

Amnesty International NZ executive director Meg de Ronde spoke to 1 NEWS ahead of the forum. 

There are currently more than 25 million refugees in the world, largely left in limbo for a long period before returning home if their country is safe, settling in their country of asylum or being resettled somewhere else. 

Read: The global refugee crisis - How NZ is gearing up to help refugees on the world stage

Ms de Ronde described the forum as "hugely significant" and an important sign "to try tackle a relatively large issue we’re dealing with". 

She said a large proportion of refugees were held in developing countries. "There isn’t enough sharing of that responsibility occurring with more wealthy nations."

In South Sudan, where thousands of people have been killed since conflict broke out in 2013, 4 million people have been forced from their homes, with Uganda and Sudan both taking in more than 800,000 people each.

New Zealand has taken nine people through the refugee quota, according to records by the Red Cross. 

"Traditional models aren’t coping with the large numbers of people who need to be safe," Ms de Ronde said. 

"We are urging the Government to look at the opportunities that are before them," she said. 

An open letter was written to the Government "to better include refugee voices in policymaking, increase the number of places available under the Refugee Family Support Category and to establish the Community Organisation Refugee Sponsorship category as a permanent pathway in New Zealand’s broader refugee and humanitarian programme".

The sponsorship category lets organisations bring refugees into the country on top of the current quota - it saw 24 refugees resettled in Nelson, Hamilton, Timaru and Christchurch.

"This would enable to Government to do more without having them to pour huge amounts of resources into it," Ms de Ronde said. 

"I am mindful we are so far away we sit back a little bit too much... but that urgency hasn’t gone away."

"It does shine a spotlight on there isn’t time to wasting."

At the forum,  pledges and commitments  can be made to achieve tangible benefits for refugees and host communities.

Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway told 1 NEWS he could not comment on the specific details of New Zealand’s pledges at this stage, "but what I can say is that they align with our resettlement objectives to improve education and employment outcomes for refugees".

He said New Zealand's pledges would be announced at the forum over the next few days. 

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