United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR)

1. In the past year, has the governing body of your organization taken any decisions to advance sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and ensure that no one is left behind? If yes, please briefly mention these decisions taken by your governing body in 2024 and provide the respective symbols. 

UNHCR Executive Committee adopted several decisions aimed at advancing sustainable and inclusive solutions for forcibly displaced and stateless people in alignment with the 2030 Agenda and the overall principle of leaving no one behind. More detailed information is available at Report of the seventy-fifth session of the Executive Committee of the High-Commissioner’s Programme | UNHCR 

2. During 2024, what actions have your entities taken to improve coordination among UN system entities across policy and normative activities as well as with ECOSOC subsidiary bodies with a view to increase impact and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda? Please provide any relevant links.

• In December 2023, the Global Refugee Forum gathered over 4,200 participants from governments, NGOs, the private sector, and refugees. They committed to actions aligned with the Global Compact on Refugees, focusing on easing pressures on host countries, enhancing refugee self-reliance, expanding third-country solutions, and supporting safe returns. Over 1,600 pledges, including financial, material, technical, and policy support, contributing to sustainable development goals. The UN Common Pledge 2.0, launched at the forum advances refugee inclusion in national systems and services aiming for a coordinated and collaborative UN approach not lo leave  refugees behind. Under this pledge, 19 UN entities and 50 UN Country Teams (UNCTs)1, led by Resident Coordinators,  committed to integrating refugees into national plans, budgets, and services
• The updated 2024 UNHCR Refugee Coordination Model guidance  emphasize government leadership, a whole-of-society approach and coherent engagement with humanitarian-development-peace strategies. This model ensures accountable, inclusive, and transparent coordination, improving outcomes for refugees and host communities. UNHCR also developed and coordinated 8 regional Refugee Response Plans,  across 50 refugee hosting countries mobilizing resources to support refugees and host communities with over 1,470 partners.
• Additionally, UNHCR participated in the Independent review of the humanitarian response to internal displacement which recommended improving leadership, coordination and resilience building for internally displace persons and their host communities. 

3. In the past year, has your organization organized any intergovernmentally mandated conferences, forums or events that contributed to the achievement of the SDGs, or has been in the process of planning and organizing any such mandated events to be held next year?  

4. In the past year, has your organization published or planned to publish any analytical work, guidance or reference materials, or toolkits to guide and support the implementation of SDGs at national, regional and global levels? Please select up to three to highlight, especially those that address interlinkages among the SDGs.  

5. The United Nations has defined six key transitions, or transformative entry points, that can have catalytic and multiplier effects across the SDGs and which have been guiding the UN development system work since the 2023 SDG Summit. In the past year, how has your organization contributed to  these transformative actions and how various actors are being rallied behind them to mobilize further leadership and investment to bring progress to scale? Please provide any relevant links. 

1) Food systems

At the 2023 GRF, the Government of Norway, FAO, WFP, supported by UNHCR, co-led the Multistakeholder Pledge: Agriculture, Food Systems and Food Security  aims at facilitating a more systematic, inclusive and meaningful refugee participation;  enhancing the data available to support effective action and investment in refugee situations; Increase social inclusion and access to livelihoods for refugees.

2) Energy access and affordability

• UNHCR’s Global Strategy for Sustainable Energy (2019-2025) supports safe, sustainable energy access for refugees and host communities, aligned with SDG 7.1.2. Key initiatives include expanding access to clean cooking fuels, transitioning from polluting fuels to clean alternatives, and producing local renewable energy sources. The Refugee Environmental Protection (REP) Fund further promotes reforestation and clean cooking by linking these initiatives to carbon markets, generating carbon credits and green jobs to scale sustainable impact.
• UNHCR, in collaboration with Utrecht University, conducted a study to assess financial needs for solar mini-grid electrification in sub-Saharan refugee settlements, estimating a demand of 154 GWh and a cost exceeding $1 billion. In 2023, UNHCR expanded solarization across health, education, and water facilities, increasing clean energy access for essential services and cutting emissions. Project Flow, an innovative financing model, advances solar energy for water systems, reducing fossil fuel reliance and enabling reinvestment in further solar projects. Through these efforts, UNHCR has significantly expanded sustainable electrification, aligning with SDG 7.1.1
• UNHCR’s partnerships support sustainable energy access for displaced populations and host communities. Through the Energy Solutions for Displacement Settings (ESDS) program with GIZ, over 160,000 people gained improved energy services, including cooking solutions and mini-grids, while capacity-building initiatives enhance community energy resilience. NORCAP provided expertise and launched the Female Accelerator Programme, advancing women’s roles in the energy sector. The Geneva Technical Hub (GTH) aided 16 countries with energy and environmental assessments, supporting renewable energy adoption and planning. Tools like the Greenhouse Gas Emission Calculator and studies on e-waste and clean energy together with  the  Swiss  Federal  Institute  of  Technology  Lausanne  (EPFL).
• At the Global Refugee Forum, UNHCR launched the first the Multistakeholder Pledge on Climate Resilient, Sustainable Human Settlements for Refugees and their Hosting Communities. The Pledge co-led by UN-Habitat and the Government of Ethiopia a aligns with SDGs 6, 7 and 11 and focuses on establishing inclusive human settlements that provide equitable access to basic services, including energy, for both refugees and hosts. Nine Pledges were energy-focused, supporting the access of refugees to clean cooking and sustainable energy solutions, while for an additional sixteen comprehensive pledges, access to energy as basic service plays a major role/ is a component. The pledge, is framed around 6 priorities (urban planning; policy and governance; housing and shelter; basic services; economy and finance; and environmental and climate action) and  brings together national and local governments, individuals, private sector, NGOs and international organizations for coordinated humanitarian and development responses to invest in Climate Resilient, Sustainable Human Settlements to the benefit of refugees and host communities, setting two targets:
  • Promoting sustainable and integrated approach to environmental and climate action, housing, land use, access to basic services and urban planning for climate resilient human settlements for refugees and their hosting communities;  
  • Mobilizing stakeholders to enhance  support and  visibility for coordinated climate-resilient development.

3) Digital connectivity

• UNHCR continues to partner with ITU, GSMA and the Government of Luxembourg, with additional support from the Government of Spain and Cisco, to convene the Connectivity for Refugees  initiative to advance the availability and affordability of digital connectivity for 20 million refugees and their hosts by 2030. In 2024 the initiative has been partnering with UNHCR country operations and partners to lay the foundations for transformational change in 12 countries across 3 continents. In these countries, the initiative is convening a range of partners across government, humanitarian, private sector, and other actors to develop evidence-based action plans and to drive forward projects which will bring meaningful connectivity to forcibly displaced people and the communities who host them.
• At a global level, UNHCR and initiative partners continue to advocate for greater attention to be given to the connectivity needs of refugees and their hosts around the world. Additionally, the initiative facilitates the exchange of knowledge on what works, so that effective strategies can be adopted and scaled.

4) Education

• Higher education: UNHCR formed the Interagency Steering Group on Higher Education in Humanitarian and Development Contexts (IASG-HE) to fill a long-standing gap in higher education in emergencies coordination and response. The IASG-HE will ensure that planning for sustainable approaches to refugee access to higher education and skills immediately after the onset of a displacement emergency. This is essential to maintaining continuity in pathways from learning to earning for young people impacted by displacement, and safeguarding against dropping out, missing years of education, having unrecognized skills and qualifications, and other factors that negatively impact their ability to engage with issues across the SDG spectrum.
• Data & evidence: UNHCR is partnering with UNESCO LLECE to produce a methodological guide for the inclusion of forcibly displaced students in regional assessments. This will help fill a data gap on learning outcomes of forcibly displaced students so that programming decisions can be made to improve access to quality education for this population group.  

5) Jobs and social protection

• At the 2023 Global Refugee Forum, UNHCR co-led the Multi-stakeholder Pledge: Economic Inclusion and Social Protection | The Global Compact on Refugees | UNHCR securing  270 pledges from 88 states and over USD 1 billion  in immediate investments.
• UNHCR’s 2023 Global Compact on Refugees “Indicator Report” covering 99 countries and 32 million refugees showed progress: 67% of refuges had legal right to work in 2023 (52% in 2021). However, only 45% could exercise this right in practice but a marked improvement from 18% in 2019.  A global survey from 132 countries also showed 40% of countries offered social protection to refugees and over half of them had the right to open a bank account. Report from 5r UNHCR operations indicated that 44% of refugees had an account at a bank, financial institution, or mobile money service provider in 2023, up from 30% in 2022.
• Additional details about UNHR contribution to transformative actions for jobs and social protection, is available at:  https://reporting.unhcr.org/global-report-2023/outcome-areas/self-reliance-economic-inclusion-and-livelihoods.
• UNHCR is a member of the Global Task Force on Refugee Labour Mobility co-leading the Multi-stakeholder Pledge on Skills-Based Pathways which aims to connect 200,000 refugees to labour mobility and education pathways over the next 5 years.  

6) Climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution

• At the 2023 Global Refugee Forum, UNHCR launched the Climate Action Multistakeholder Pledge, co-led by the Governments of Denmark, Ethiopia, Germany, and Somalia, aligning with SDG13 on climate action. The pledge aims to strengthen the protection, preparedness, and resilience of refugees, other forcibly displaced and stateless people, and their host communities to climate impacts. The pledge calls for action in key thematic areas with cross cutting elements on data, knowledge, and capacity building:
  • Scaled-up accessible finance, from donors and financial actors;
  • Inclusive laws, policies, and plans  by host countries and countries of origin, with support from other stakeholders;
  • Projects based on good practice  engaging all stakeholders.
• UNHCR continued to contribute technical and policy expertise to UNFCCC policy processes as a member of the Task Force on Displacement under the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage associated with Climate Change Impacts, and in follow up to the Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction. UNHCR collaborated with over 50 partners in 70 events at COP28 in Dubai, and to the “COP28 Declaration on climate, relief, recovery and peace.” This engagement underscored UNHCR's commitment to addressing climate-related displacement and supporting resilient solutions for displaced communities.

7) Statistical inclusion  

• Statistical inclusion is key to assess the progress towards the SDGs and is key to keeping the central promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to leave no-one behind. Through multi-stakeholder approaches, efforts are underway to accurately capture forcibly displaced, stateless people and host communities in censuses, administrative data sources, or nationwide household surveys. Accurate and disaggregated data on displaced and stateless persons, such as demographics and socio-economic conditions, is essential for governments to make informed policy decisions that support well-being and durable solutions. Insights from the data – particularly when it can be compared to data on non-displaced populations or the general population living in the same country – can guide the design and implementation of more integrated policies, that better meet the specific needs of forcibly displaced and stateless persons. These policies could be governing access to health, education, or work. Moreover, when this data is provided by trusted national systems that are guided by professional independence and accountability. In the GCR, 100 pledges have been made to include forcibly displaced population in national survey. EGRISS is comprised of members from 60 national statistics authorities from different regions of the world and 37 regional and international organizations.  

6. Please provide strategies (policies, guidance, plan) and/or collective actions taken to implement the 2024 Ministerial Declaration of the Economic and Social Council and the high-level political forum on sustainable development convened under the auspices of the Council. Please note any challenges foreseen and provide any relevant links. 

• UNHCR has strengthened strategic partnerships, enhancing collaboration across the humanitarian, development, and peace nexus. This includes engaging with development actors, sport organizations, and international financial institutions.  
• Building on the commitments made at the GRF 2023, UNHCR has catalyzed  the implementation of multi-stakeholder pledges that advance refugees and host communities well-being aligning with  the SDGs and advancing the principle of "leaving no one behind."  Several of these pledges align and contribute directly to the SDGs discussed at the 2024 High-Level Political Forum, including pledges on Economic Inclusion and Social Protection (SDG 1), Agriculture and Food Security (SDG 2), Climate Action and Financing (SDG 13), and Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention (SDG 16). These pledges bring together Member States, civil society, private sector, and other actors into a "whole-of-society" approach essential addressing forced displacement and achieving the 2030 Agenda more broadly.  
• To further demonstrate and maximize policy coherence, UNHCR also hosted a side event at the Summit of the Future which outlined the mutual reinforcement of the Global Compact on Refugees and the Pact for the Future. 

7. What collective efforts is your entity undertaking to support countries in accelerating the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, especially in the areas of Goal 3 (Good health and well-being), Goal 5 (Gender equality), Goal 8 (Decent work and economic growth), Goal 14 (Life below water) and Goal 17 (Partnerships), which will go under in-depth review at the HLPF in 2025? Please note any achievements, challenges and gaps and provide any relevant links.