World Refugee Day: UNHCR calls for greater support for 42 million refugees

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih has called for renewed global solidarity and support for nearly 42 million refugees as the world observes World Refugee Day on Saturday, highlighting the challenges faced by people forced to flee their countries due to war, violence and persecution.

Barham Salih emphasised the positive impact refugees have on the communities that host them, noting their roles as workers, students, neighbours, artists, athletes, entrepreneurs and leaders.

“Given the opportunity, they rebuild their lives and help strengthen the societies around them,” he said ahead of World Refugee Day, observed annually on 20 June.

Bangladesh at the heart of global refugee response

For Bangladesh, World Refugee Day serves as a reminder of one of the world’s largest and most prolonged refugee crises.

Nearly a decade after fleeing violence and persecution in Myanmar, around 1.3 million stateless Rohingya refugees continue to live in camps in southeastern Bangladesh.

Despite immense pressure on resources, Bangladesh has remained one of the world’s leading refugee-hosting nations, providing shelter and humanitarian access to displaced Rohingyas.

However, the situation is entering what the UN refugee agency describes as a “fragile phase”.

According to UNHCR, declining international funding, worsening camp conditions and limited livelihood opportunities are increasing the vulnerability of refugee families.

Most Rohingyas remain heavily dependent on humanitarian assistance, with only a small proportion able to earn income through cash-for-work programmes.

The agency warned that women, children, older persons, people with disabilities and approximately 1,50,000 newly arrived refugees who entered the camps since early 2024 are among the most vulnerable groups.

Bangladesh has renewed its call for the early repatriation of the Rohingya refugees to Myanmar.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam has called for stronger international action to protect civilians, uphold international humanitarian law and ensure sustained global support for the safe and dignified repatriation of Rohingyas to Myanmar.

She made the call while speaking at a high-level panel discussion of the 2026 Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Humanitarian Affairs Segment at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on Thursday last, according to the Permanent Mission of Bangladesh to the UN.

Speaking at a UN briefing by the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Myanmar on 19 June, Bangladesh’s Permanent Representative, Ambassador Salahuddin Noman Chowdhury underscored that the Rohingya crisis originated in Myanmar and that its durable solution must also be found there.

He noted that hosting approximately 1.2 million Rohingyas for nearly a decade has placed significant social, economic, environmental and security burdens on Bangladesh.

Reaffirming Bangladesh’s commitment to a peaceful resolution of the crisis, the Permanent Representative urged the international community and key regional actors to intensify diplomatic efforts and engagement to facilitate the early repatriation of the Rohingyas to Myanmar.

Rising challenges

UN Secretary-General António Guterres also issued a message urging greater assistance for displaced people and the communities that have provided them refuge.

“As divisions deepen across our world, new and protracted conflicts are compelling millions of women, children and men to seek safety far from home,” he said.

He underscored the need for increased cooperation and decisive measures to protect refugees, saying that “these turbulent times” require renewed solidarity and meaningful action.

The reality of displacement

Barham Salih reflected on the difficult decision many refugees face, drawing from his own experience of fleeing repression in Iraq as a young man.

“Fleeing home to seek safety is one of the hardest choices anyone can make. I know that from personal experience,” said Barham Salih, who as a young man fled repression in Iraq.

He stressed that refugee status should not determine a person’s entire future.

“While a person may, for a time, be defined as a refugee, becoming a refugee should not define a person’s life.”

Barham Salih also warned that many refugees remain dependent on shrinking humanitarian assistance for their basic needs.

He noted that while emergency aid is essential, many refugees remain displaced for years or even decades.

“Being a refugee is meant to be a temporary condition, not a lifelong fate,” he said.

Reducing long-term displacement

To address this challenge, Barham Salih announced a major objective aimed at reducing prolonged displacement.

“That is why I have set out an ambitious goal: to cut by half, within ten years, the number of refugees living in protracted displacement and reliant on humanitarian assistance.”

The initiative will concentrate on low- and middle-income countries, which host most of the world’s refugee population.

“Achieving this target…would vastly improve the lives of millions of people. It is how we can move from merely managing displacement to resolving it,” he said.

Marking 75 years of refugee protection

This year's World Refugee Day coincides with the 75th anniversary of the Refugee Convention. Adopted in 1951 after the Second World War, the treaty established the right of people fleeing war, conflict, or persecution to seek safety and protection.

“We must continue to uphold that promise. Until everyone is safe, none of us are safe,” said Barham Salih.

“This is not merely a statement of solidarity but a call to action. Because the right to seek safety was made for times like these, and it is up to all of us to defend it.”

Campaign to support refugees

Barham Salih leads the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, which is using this year’s World Refugee Day theme, Until Everyone is Safe, to encourage young people to support refugees and defend the right to asylum.

The campaign seeks to challenge common misconceptions about refugees and highlights that the right to seek safety extends beyond escaping war and violence.

It also aligns with UNHCR’s goal of cutting the number of refugees living in long-term displacement by half by 2035, a target outlined in the agency’s latest Global Trends Report.

Known as the 50 by 35 vision, the plan aims to expand refugees’ access to employment, education, healthcare, and social protection systems, helping them become more self-reliant and less dependent on humanitarian aid.

UN and its humanitarian partners called for renewed international support, as they presented the 2026 update of the Joint Response Plan (JRP) recently for the Rohingya humanitarian crisis.

The hyper-prioritised plan appeals for USD 710.5 million, to reach up to 1.56 million people, including refugees and Bangladeshi host communities.

The appeal - a 26 per cent reduction from the 2025 JRP - covers only the minimum required to sustain lifesaving assistance.

Mid-way through the year, generous support from the international community has led the appeal to be already 60 per cent funded.