Event

21 January 2025

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Geneva, Switzerland

Presentation of Report on Internal Displacement in Africa to the Group of African Ambassadors

IDMC presented the key insights from its report Internal Displacement in Africa: An overview of trends and developments (2009-2023) to the Group of African Ambassadors in Geneva.

Alexandra Bilak, IDMC Director, H.E. Alier Deng Ruai Deng, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of South Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva and Chair of the Group of African Ambassadors in Geneva, and H.E Amr Abdellatif Aboualatta, Ambassador and Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations in Geneva (from left to right), at the presentation of IDMC’s report on internal displacement in Africa.
Alexandra Bilak, IDMC Director, H.E. Alier Deng Ruai Deng, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of South Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva and Chair of the Group of African Ambassadors in Geneva, and H.E  Amr Abdellatif Aboualatta, Ambassador and Permanent Observer of the African Union to the United Nations in Geneva (from left to right), at the presentation of IDMC’s report on internal displacement in Africa.

21 January 2025
15:00 – 17:00
Geneva

More than 15 years since the adoption of the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention), a landmark treaty to address internal displacement in Africa, the number of people living in internal displacement on the continent has tripled to 35 million. IDMC convened Ambassadors and representatives from 25 African states and the African Union to present the insights from its latest report Internal Displacement in Africa: An overview of trends and developments (2009-2023) and engage in a dialogue about its findings. 

After an opening by H.E. Alier Deng Ruai Deng, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of South Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva and Chair of the Group of African Ambassadors, IDMC Director Alexandra Bilak introduced the report and its relevance, highlighting that while the numbers of internally displaced people on the continent are rising rapidly, the situation is far from hopeless. From the development of legal and policy frameworks to building national data systems to support informed decision-making, governments across Africa are taking significant steps to prevent, address and resolve internal displacement with appropriate international support.

After the presentation, more than half of the participants asked questions and provided feedback to IDMC, focusing on the value and challenges of collecting quality data, sharing good practices and integrating internal displacement with other relevant policy issues such as sustainable development, climate action and disaster risk reduction, and the financing needs and opportunities.

Programme

15:00 Welcome remarks by H.E. Alier Deng Ruai Deng, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of South Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva and Chair of the Group of African Ambassadors, including introduction of the agenda.

15:05 Opening remarks by Ms. Alexandra Bilak, Director of IDMC.

15:15 Presentation of the key findings of the 4th report on internal displacement in Africa by Mr. Vicente Anzellini, Global and Regional Analysis Manager, IDMC.

15:40 Tour de table and Q&A.

16:50 Closing remarks by Ms. Alexandra Bilak.

16:55 Closing remarks by the H.E. Alier Deng Ruai Deng, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of South Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva and Chair of the Group of African Ambassadors.

 

Representatives from African states follow the presentation on the report’s key findings.
Fatim Diakite, Second Counsellor from the Permanent Mission of Mali to the United Nations in Geneva, in conversation with Youssef Jai, IDMC Senior Policy Adviser at the event with Ambassadors and representatives from 25 African states and the African Union.
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