‘Step Up Efforts to Protect, Support Refugees on Every Step of Their Journey’, Urges Secretary-General in Message for World Day

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message for World Refugee Day, observed on 20 June:

From Sudan to Ukraine, from the Middle East to Myanmar to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and beyond, conflict, climate chaos and upheaval are forcing record numbers of people from their homes and fuelling profound human suffering.

The latest figures show that a total of more than 120 million people around the world are forcibly displaced, including 43.5 million refugees.

World Refugee Day is about honouring their strength and courage — and stepping up efforts to protect and support refugees on every step of their journey.

Refugees need global solidarity and the ability to rebuild their lives in dignity.

When given the opportunity, refugees make significant contributions to their host communities, but they need access to equal opportunities and to jobs, housing and health care.

Young refugees need quality education to achieve their dreams.

And generous host countries, mostly low- or middle-income countries, need the support and resources to fully include refugees in societies and economies.

Let us pledge to reaffirm the world’s collective responsibility in assisting and welcoming refugees, in upholding their human rights including the right to seek asylum, in safeguarding the integrity of the refugee protection regime and, ultimately, in resolving conflicts so that those forced from their communities can return home.