The UNHCR-NGO Protection Reach Out Process

Protection is the most important and also the most sensitive area for NGO-UNHCR partnership. Several ideas from the initial PARinAC recommendations have been brought forward, including the issuing of a Field Guide for NGOs called "Protecting Refugees." Many of the partnership efforts by UNHCR on protection have been performed lately under the "Reach Out" initiative, inter alia, through consultations and dialogue with governments, as well as with the non-governmental sector.

The protection failures in the Great Lakes and elsewhere and the systematic and intentional violation of the most basic principles of refugee protection by States prompted UNHCR to embark upon a process to address these concerns. The result was the "Reach Out" initiative started at the end of 1997.

The Reach Out process was intended to reinvigorate support for the essential institutions of refugee protection and for UNHCR's protection mandate. UNHCR realised that the international refugee protection system depends on coalitions of like-minded actors and thus decided to reach out to several groups of actors.

The process began with bilateral consultations with member States of UNHCR's Executive Committee in January 1998. UNHCR tried to ascertain the views of members States on key issues and to gain increased support for its efforts to strengthen the international protection regime.

NGOs were only brought into the second phase of the process, which was launched with a round-table discussion in March 1999 with representatives of 30 international humanitarian and human rights NGOs. Umbrella organisations of NGOs, other UN agencies, governments, and donors supporting the Reach Out process attended in an observer capacity.

UNHCR and participating NGOs will work on developing a common protection agenda. Several NGO-led task forces were set up to look further into the following issues:

1. mechanisms for sharing and the use of sensitive information, including at the field level;
   
2. staff training and staff exchanges;
   
3. capacity-building and collaboration with NGOs from the South;
   
4. cooperation and consultation in the context of standard-setting processes, including those of the Executive Committee;
   
5. promoting accessions to and compliance with the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, including the development of appropriate compliance mechanisms; and
   
6. coordination and cooperation in advocacy activities.

These task forces are in the process of developing concrete proposals on these issues. A joint UNHCR-NGO Steering Committee will then decide on how best to take these proposals for concrete and operationally-focused partnerships in protection advocacy forward.

In addition, two regional meetings in Bangkok and Nairobi have been held to engage in in-depth discussions with advocacy-oriented national NGOs that have a demonstrated interest in, and commitment to, refugee protection issues.

In future phases, UNHCR intends to expand the Reach Out process to other non-state actors, including sister UN agencies and bodies, international financial institutions, and the corporate sector. Initial meetings have taken place with representatives of these groups of actors.

• Background Information Note on the UNHCR-NGO Protection Reach Out Process
• The PARinAC Review (2000) — Within the PARinAC Review, protection was highlighted as one of the key areas for NGO-UNHCR cooperation. A section on refugee protection provides recommendations on how this cooperation can be improved.

• Reach Out Steering Committee — General Information and contact information on the joint NGO-UNHCR Steering Committee for the Protection Reach Out process.
  
• Meeting Reports — Meeting reports from the Reach Out Steering Committee and from Regional meetings.
  
• Task Forces — At its first meeting, held in May 1999, the UNHCR-NGO Reach Out Steering Committee set up six NGO-led task forces to begin working on agreed proposals.
  • Task Force 1 — Mechanisms for sharing and use of sensitive information, including at the field level to strengthen protection.
    
  • Task Force 2 — Staff training and staff exchanges to operationalise protection.
    
  • Task Force 3 — Capacity-building and collaboration with NGOs from the South.
    
  • Task Force 4 — Cooperation and consultation in the context of standard-setting processes, including those of the Executive Committee.
    
  • Task Force 5/6 — "Promoting accessions to and compliance with" the 1951 convention relating to the Status of Refugees, including the development of appropriate mechanisms and coordination and cooperation in advocacy activities.