Briefing papersMay 2020Phil Vernon, Sorcha O'Callaghan and Kerrie HollowayUNMISS Protection of Civilians site for displaced people, Juba, South Sudan. Photo: UN Photo/Isaac BillyInternally displaced people (IDPs) uprooted by conflict are peace and conflict actors, not merely victims in need of assistance. Their displacement may be highly political and is often intended by the conflict parties. Their displacement affects other communities, too.Peace processes that include displacement-affected communities, and take account of their interests and needs, are less likely to fail. This policy brief – a joint submission by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs and HPG to the UN High-Level Panel on Internal Displacement – argues that sustaining peace and finding durable solutions to displacement must therefore go hand in hand.Key messagesDespite recent commitments to peacebuilding and UN reforms, displacement-affected communities are being left out of peacebuilding processes involving human security, peace agreements, reconciliation, transitional justice, dispute resolution and building long-term resilience to conflict. This is partly due to contextual factors, but also to persisting institutional silos that prevent the humanitarian, development and peacebuilding ‘triple nexus’ from being realised.The High-Level Panel should make peacebuilding a priority in its deliberations. It should remind UN entities, affected Member States, donors and civil society of their responsibility to promote durable solutions for displacement that include peacebuilding, and it should recommend the development of practical guidelines for doing so.The Panel should also recommend strengthening current UN reforms, to facilitate the integration of IDPs and other affected communities in peacebuilding. This includes encouraging donors to adapt their funding instruments, to incentivise and hold agencies accountable for working together across the triple nexus. Read the research Achieving durable solutions by including displacement-affected communities in peacebuildingDocumentRelated Moving forward on gender, livelihoods and financing: submission to UN High-Level Panel on internal displacementThis policy brief highlights three key focus areas for the UN High-Level Panel on internal displacement: gender, livelihoods and innovative financing. Briefing papers6 May 2020 Countering the caliphate in North Africa: three expert views on gender and the need for collective actionThree key insights from experts working with the UN to promote regional collaboration and gender in Countering and Preventing Violent Extremism programmes.Articles and blogs15 November 2019 Protection of displaced Libyans: risks, responses and border dynamicsExamining the protection of Libyans displaced in Tunisia and within Libya.Working and discussion papers1 August 2019 Twenty years of protection of civilians at the UN Security CouncilExploring the current state of the protection of civilians in armed conflict agenda and proposing steps to help close the gap between law and action.Briefing papers21 May 2019See more:displacementmigration and refugeesconflict and violencecivilian security and protectionGlobal
