Protection of and Assistance to Internally Displaced Persons

A/RES/74/160View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 70b Human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms, published in 2020.

What other versions does this mandate have?

16 versions · 1996–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/211

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2025	A/RES/80/211	Protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons	6,278	97%Compare
2023	A/RES/78/205	Protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons	6,248	93%Compare
2022	A/RES/76/167	Protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons	5,898	92%Compare
2020	A/RES/74/160	Protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons	5,628	26%Compare
2018	A/RES/72/182	Protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons	5,137	74%Compare

What subjects does this mandate have?

5 subjects

Coordination Within UN System Displaced Persons Human Rights Humanitarian Assistance Responsibility to Protect

What’s in this document?

44 operative paragraphs

Takes note with appreciation of the main report of the Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council on the human rights of internally displaced persons¹⁵ and the conclusions contained therein;

¹⁵A/HRC/41/40.

Commends the Special Rapporteur for the activities undertaken so far, for the catalytic role that she plays in raising the level of awareness about the plight of internally displaced persons and for her ongoing efforts to address their development and other specific needs, including through the mainstreaming of the human rights of internally displaced persons into all relevant parts of the United Nations system;

Encourages the Special Rapporteur, through continuous dialogue with Governments and all intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations concerned, to continue her analysis of the reasons for internal displacement and to remain apprised of the needs and human rights of those who are displaced, including the needs of those who may be in particularly vulnerable situations, including women, children, older persons and persons with disabilities, the level of emergency preparedness and ways to strengthen protection and assistance, including by enhancing the role of national human rights institutions, where appropriate, and the protection of internally displaced persons, as well as durable solutions for internally displaced persons, including by addressing possible obstacles to the exercise of housing, land and property rights for internally displaced persons, also encourages the Special Rapporteur, with regard to the latter, to use, in her activities, the Framework on Durable Solutions for Internally Displaced Persons of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee,10 and further encourages the Special Rapporteur to continue to advocate the needs of host communities and promote comprehensive strategies, taking into account the primary responsibility of States for the protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons within their jurisdiction;

Welcomes the initiatives undertaken by regional organizations, such as the African Union, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, the Organization of American States and the Council of Europe, to address the protection, assistance and development needs of internally displaced persons and to find durable solutions for them, and encourages regional organizations to strengthen their activities and their cooperation with the Special Rapporteur;

Urges all Governments to continue to facilitate the activities of the Special Rapporteur, in particular Governments with situations of internal displacement, and to respond favourably to requests from the Special Rapporteur to enable her to continue and enhance dialogue with Governments in addressing situations of internal displacement, and thanks those Governments that have already done so;

Invites Governments to give serious consideration, in dialogue with the Special Rapporteur, to the recommendations and suggestions addressed to them, in accordance with her mandate, and to inform her of measures taken thereon;

Welcomes the use of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement8 by the Special Rapporteur in her dialogue with Governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations and other relevant actors, and requests her to continue her efforts to further their dissemination, promotion, application and integration into domestic laws and policies and to provide support for efforts to promote capacity-building and the use of the Guiding Principles, as well as the development of domestic legislation and policies;

Recognizes that Member States have the primary responsibility to promote durable solutions for their internally displaced persons, as well as to respect, protect and fulfil their human rights, thus contributing to their national, economic and social development processes, and encourages the international community, the United Nations system, the Special Rapporteur, relevant international and regional organizations and donor countries to continue to support international, regional and national efforts to meet the needs and fulfil the human rights of internally displaced persons, including children, on the basis of solidarity, the principles of international cooperation and the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and to ensure that humanitarian assistance, early recovery and development assistance efforts are appropriately funded;

Requests Member States to strengthen their efforts to ensure the protection of and better assistance to internally displaced persons, in particular to address the challenges of protracted displacement, by adopting and implementing gender-sensitive policies and strategies, in accordance with national and regional frameworks, while recognizing the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement as an important international framework for the protection of internally displaced persons, encourages all relevant actors, in accordance with their mandates, to make use of the Guiding Principles when dealing with situations of internal displacement, and in this regard recognizes the central role of national and local authorities and institutions in addressing the specific needs of internally displaced persons and in finding solutions to displacement through, inter alia, continued and enhanced international support, upon request, for the capacity-building of States;

Encourages States to ensure that internally displaced persons, including children, have access to a process to obtain appropriate identification documents;

Notes the launch of the multi-stakeholder Plan of Action for Advancing Prevention, Protection and Solutions for Internally Displaced Persons 2018–2020 (GP20) to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement;

Expresses its appreciation for the fact that an increasing number of States have adopted domestic legislation and policies dealing with all stages of displacement, encourages States to continue to do so in an inclusive and non-discriminatory way, consistent with the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, urges States to increase their efforts to implement such domestic laws and policies, including through the identification of national focal points within Governments for issues of internal displacement, in particular for setting national targets and indicators for policy and programmes and for the allocation of budget resources, and encourages the international community and national actors to provide financial support and cooperation to Governments, upon request, in this regard;

Calls upon Governments to provide protection and assistance, including reintegration and development assistance, to internally displaced persons and to facilitate the efforts of the relevant United Nations agencies and humanitarian organizations in this regard by allowing and facilitating safe and unhindered access for humanitarian personnel and the delivery of supplies and equipment to internally displaced persons, in accordance with international law, by maintaining the civilian and humanitarian character of camps and settlements for internally displaced persons, where they exist, and by taking the steps necessary to ensure the safety and security of humanitarian personnel so that they may efficiently perform their task of assisting internally displaced persons;

Expresses particular concern about the full range of threats, violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law experienced by many internally displaced persons, including women and children, who are particularly vulnerable or specifically targeted especially for sexual and gender-based violence and sexual exploitation and abuse, trafficking in persons in all its forms,¹⁶ forced recruitment and abduction, encourages the continued commitment of the Special Rapporteur to promote action to address their particular assistance and protection needs, and calls upon States, in cooperation with international agencies and other stakeholders, to provide protection and assistance to internally displaced persons who are victims of the above-mentioned threats, violations and abuses, as well as other groups of internally displaced persons with special needs, such as severely traumatized individuals, older persons and persons with disabilities, taking into account all relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council;

¹⁶As defined in article 3 of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2237, No. 39574).

Encourages the international community to provide technical cooperation to States affected by displacement, upon their request, including for the training of staff members of institutions in charge of registration and development of national laws and policies on internal displacement and issues related to land and property restitution and compensation;

Emphasizes the central role of the Emergency Relief Coordinator in the coordination of the protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons, inter alia, through the inter-agency cluster system, welcomes continued initiatives to ensure better protection, assistance and development strategies for internally displaced persons, as well as better coordination of activities regarding them, and emphasizes the need to strengthen the capacities of national and local authorities, host communities, local organizations, United Nations organizations and other relevant actors to meet the immense humanitarian challenges of internal displacement;

Notes with appreciation the increased attention paid to the issue of internally displaced persons in humanitarian response plans, and encourages further efforts in this regard;

Emphasizes the importance of communication and consultation with internally displaced persons and host communities by Governments and other relevant actors, in accordance with their specific mandates, during all phases of displacement, as well as the participation of internally displaced persons, where appropriate, in policies, programmes and activities pertaining to them, taking into account the primary responsibility of States for the protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons within their jurisdiction;

Calls upon States, in cooperation with international agencies and other stakeholders, to provide for and support, in particular, the full and meaningful participation of internally displaced women at all levels of decision-making processes and in all activities that have a direct impact on their lives, in all aspects of internal displacement, including the promotion and protection of human rights, the prevention of human rights violations and the design and implementation of durable solutions, peace processes, peacebuilding, transitional justice, post-conflict reconstruction and development;

Encourages all relevant United Nations organizations and humanitarian assistance, human rights and development organizations to enhance their collaboration and coordination through the Inter-Agency Standing Committee and United Nations country teams in countries with situations of internal displacement and to provide all possible assistance and support to the Special Rapporteur, and requests the continued participation of the Special Rapporteur in the work of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee and its subsidiary bodies;

Encourages the Inter-Agency Standing Committee to enhance coordination, effectiveness, efficiency and predictability in preventing, responding to and finding solutions to internal displacement;

Expresses deep concern at the insufficient funding levels of humanitarian appeals, and in this respect urges all relevant actors to provide the relevant United Nations agencies and humanitarian organizations with sufficient and predictable resources to ensure adequate support for those who are forcibly displaced;

Calls upon all parties to armed conflict to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law, and international human rights law, as applicable, with a view to preventing forced displacement and promoting the protection of civilians, and calls upon Governments to take measures to respect and protect the human rights of all internally displaced persons, without distinction of any kind, in accordance with their applicable obligations under international law;

Calls upon States, in cooperation with all other relevant actors, including humanitarian and development agencies and donors, to ensure the right to a quality education, including primary and secondary education, for internally displaced children, without discrimination of any kind, as well as to support existing schools to enable them to include internally displaced persons, calls upon all parties to armed conflict to respect the civilian character of schools and other educational institutions and to refrain from undertaking actions that could adversely affect the protection of these buildings against direct attacks, and strongly condemns all attacks, as well as threats of attack, against schools, in contravention of international humanitarian law;

Highlights the need for States, with the support of relevant partners, including humanitarian and development agencies and donors, as appropriate, to address the physical and mental health needs of internally displaced persons, which may include assistance, health care and psychosocial and other counselling services;

Stresses the obligation, in accordance with international humanitarian law and national laws and regulations, as applicable, to respect and protect medical personnel, as well as humanitarian personnel exclusively engaged in medical duties, their means of transport and equipment, as well as hospitals and other medical facilities, in all circumstances, in this regard notes the role of domestic legal frameworks and other appropriate measures in promoting the safety and protection of such personnel, urges States and all parties to armed conflict to develop and integrate effective measures to prevent and address violence against such personnel, their means of transport and equipment, as well as hospitals and other medical facilities, and strongly urges States to conduct full, prompt, impartial and effective investigations within their jurisdiction of violations of international humanitarian law related to the protection of the wounded and sick, including internally displaced persons, medical personnel and humanitarian personnel exclusively engaged in medical duties, their means of transport and equipment, as well as hospitals and other medical facilities in armed conflict, and, where appropriate, to take action against those responsible in accordance with domestic and international law, with a view to reinforcing preventive measures, ensuring accountability and addressing the grievances of victims, including internally displaced persons;

Recognizes the adverse effects of climate change as contributors to environmental degradation and extreme weather events, which may, among other factors, contribute to human displacement, and in this regard notes the adoption of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 in March 2015,¹⁷ the Paris Agreement adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in December 2015¹⁸ and relevant initiatives related to internal displacement, such as the Nansen Initiative, and their follow-up processes, and encourages the Special Rapporteur, in close collaboration with States and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, to continue to explore the human rights implications and dimensions of disaster-induced internal displacement, with a view to supporting Member States in their efforts to build local resilience and capacity to prevent and prepare for displacement or to provide assistance through well-planned recovery programmes that support internally displaced persons and their hosts and provide protection to those who are forced to flee;

¹⁷Resolution 69/283, annex II.

¹⁸See FCCC/CP/2015/10/Add.1, decision 1/CP.21, annex.

Affirms the need for the effective implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 to integrate, as appropriate, post-disaster reconstruction and recovery, including the principle of “build back better”, into the economic and social sustainable development of affected areas, as well as temporary settlements where displaced persons live, to promote periodic disaster preparedness and response exercises in recovery and resettlement efforts, with a view to ensuring a rapid and effective response to disasters and related displacement, and to promote transboundary cooperation to build resilience and reduce disaster risk, including displacement risk, including by establishing or improving early warning systems, including heatwave early warning, connected to longer-term risk management systems and supported by public awareness campaigns, recognizing that early action following quality forecasts can reduce the impact of extreme weather events;

Recognizes that internal displacement is not only a humanitarian but also a development challenge, and in some cases can also be a peacebuilding challenge, and calls upon States to provide durable solutions and address possible obstacles in this regard and to include the needs, vulnerabilities and capacities of internally displaced persons and host communities in their national development plans;

Encourages closer cooperation between development and humanitarian actors, in accordance with their respective mandates, towards collective results over multiple years, with the aim of reducing the needs and vulnerabilities of internally displaced persons, in support of national priorities, while fully respecting the importance of humanitarian principles for humanitarian action;

Also encourages strengthened international cooperation, in particular between humanitarian and development actors, including through the provision of resources, coherent multi-year planning that addresses protracted displacement and expertise to assist affected countries, in particular developing countries, in their national efforts and policies related to assistance, protection, resilience-building and rehabilitation for internally displaced persons and host communities, as appropriate, and the integration of the human rights and needs of internally displaced persons into both rural and urban development strategies, as well as the participation of both internally displaced persons and host communities in the design and implementation of those strategies;

Calls upon the United Nations to work closely with Member States and other relevant actors, including local governments, civil society and the private sector, in furtherance of the New Urban Agenda12 in order to promote more effective emergency preparedness and response in urban areas, and notes the importance of addressing, as appropriate, the particular needs and vulnerabilities of internally displaced persons in urban settings and of supporting host cities, in the spirit of international cooperation, including by ensuring equal access to income-earning opportunities and preventing arbitrary forced evictions;

Encourages Member States, humanitarian agencies, donors, development actors and other providers of development assistance to continue to work together, in close cooperation with the Special Rapporteur, to provide a more predictable response to the needs of internally displaced persons, including long-term development assistance for the implementation of durable solutions, with a view to reducing internal displacement;

Encourages Governments, United Nations agencies and other stakeholders to promote an inclusive approach to durable solutions that addresses the needs of internally displaced persons and their host communities, including the promotion of opportunities to fully harness the human potential of the displaced populations by promoting self-sufficiency through income-generating activities and sustainable livelihood opportunities;

Urges all countries to integrate the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development11 into their respective national policies and development frameworks, as appropriate, and recalls that the 2030 Agenda seeks to address the needs of the most vulnerable, including internally displaced persons;

Notes the importance of taking the human rights and the specific protection and assistance needs of internally displaced persons into consideration, when appropriate, in peace processes, and emphasizes that durable solutions for internally displaced persons, including through voluntary return, sustainable reintegration, rehabilitation and reconciliation processes and their active participation, as appropriate, in the peace process are necessary elements of effective peacebuilding;

Welcomes the role of the Peacebuilding Commission in this regard, and continues to urge the Commission to intensify its efforts, within its mandate, in cooperation with national and transitional Governments and in consultation with the relevant United Nations entities, to incorporate the rights and the specific needs of internally displaced persons, including their voluntary return in safety and with dignity, reintegration and rehabilitation, as well as related land and property issues, when advising on or proposing country-specific peacebuilding strategies for post-conflict situations in cases under consideration;

Also welcomes the dedication by the African Union of 2019 to, inter alia, mark the tenth anniversary of the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention), encourages African States to mark the tenth anniversary of the Kampala Convention in 2019 by signing and ratifying the Convention, if they have not done so, and encourages other regional mechanisms to develop their own regional normative frameworks for the protection of internally displaced persons, such as renewed commitments towards ratification and implementation of the Kampala Convention made in March 2019 by parliamentarians and national experts on internal displacement of the Economic Community of West African States participating in a regional exchange held under the auspices of the Plan of Action for Advancing Prevention, Protection and Solutions for Internally Displaced Persons 2018–2020 (GP20) to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the Kampala Convention;

Encourages Member States, members of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee, United Nations humanitarian coordinators and country teams to contribute to the provision of reliable data on internal displacement situations, with the cooperation of the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre and the technical support and assistance of the Joint Internally Displaced Person Profiling Service, and to provide financial resources, as appropriate, in these respects;

Recalls the need to reflect on effective strategies to ensure adequate protection and assistance for internally displaced persons and to prevent and reduce such displacement, and in this regard encourages the Secretary-General to work with Member States and the United Nations system to explore ways to better address the long-term needs of internally displaced persons, support communities that host them and improve the lives of the many millions of internally displaced persons;

Requests the Secretary-General to continue to provide the Special Rapporteur, from within existing resources, with all assistance necessary to strengthen and carry out her mandate effectively, and encourages the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in close cooperation with the Emergency Relief Coordinator, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Organization for Migration and all other relevant United Nations offices and agencies and related organizations, to continue to support and cooperate with the Special Rapporteur;

Encourages the Special Rapporteur to continue to seek the contributions of States, relevant organizations and institutions in order to create a more stable basis for her work;

Requests the Special Rapporteur to submit to the General Assembly at its seventy-fifth and seventy-sixth sessions a report on the implementation of the present resolution;

Decides to continue its consideration of the question of protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons at its seventy-sixth session.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

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