ReDSS Ethiopia CRRF monthly update November 2019

ARRA/UNHCR multi-stakeholder consultations on GRF pledge development for Ethiopia: Ongoing consultations around pledge development have continued, with a workshop held on five November focusing on the four areas identified by the government: jobs and livelihoods, education, protection capacity, and energy/environment. The final pledges will be formally presented at the upcoming Global Refugee Forum on 17-18 December 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland.

IGAD preparatory meeting for the upcoming Global Refugee Forum (GRF), Djibouti, 26-27 November: the objectives of the meeting were to discuss the IGAD Regional Support Platform; to review IGAD GRF Spotlight Session; and to support country level GRF preparations and share draft pledges. The workshop was attended by member states delegations from Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia, Uganda, Sudan and South Sudan as well as UNHCR, donors and partners including ReDSS. For more information contact Cate Osborn c.osborn@regionaldss.org.

ReDSS & ILO Refugee Research Seminar, Addis Ababa, 19 November: the objective was to bring researchers, practitioners and policy makers to reflect on latest research and evidence related to refugees in Ethiopia, so as to inform programing and policies processes. Click here for the agenda, presentations, outcomes report, and other resources. For more information, contact Solomon Hassen s.hassen@regionaldss.org.

Refugee Response Index (RRI) workshop, Addis Ababa, 22 November: the objective was to introduce RRI pillars and indicators, review the initial data collected for Ethiopia and produce a preliminary assessment. The RRI is a multi-stakeholder initiative led by DARA in collaboration with the Danish Refugee Council and supported by a platform of partners globally. It focuses on improving outcomes for refugees through better monitoring and accountability.

European Union Trust Fund CRRF launch event, Jijiga, 27 November: The European Union officially launched their support to the CRRF in Ethiopia in Jijiga and it has three components: 1. UNHCR/ReDSS on support to government, 2. World Bank/Urban Job Creation and Food Security Agency on social protection, 3. Mercy Corps/ Danish Refugee Council on economic opportunities. The event was opened by the Regional President and attended by representatives from federal and regional government entities, UN agencies, NGOs, and refugee and host communities. Click here for an infographic of component 1(UNHCR/ReDSS) and click here for the event agenda and fact sheet of the three component areas.

UNHCR workshop on the establishment of an Ethiopian Network of Academics on Forced Displacement and related issues (ENAFD), Addis Ababa, 28 November: the initiative is part of the GCR Global Academic Network (GAN). The objective was to discuss opportunities and potential focus of such a platform, and a steering committee was elected comprised of five members from academic and research institutions across Ethiopia. For more information, contact Minilik Assefa at assefami@unhcr.org.

Africa Refugee Summit multi-stakeholder session, Addis Ababa, 30th November to 2nd December: the Africa Refugee Summit is a refugee-led initiative convened by the Global Refugee-Led Network (GRN). The summit brought together over 70 refugee leaders and representatives from refugee-led organizations. The objective was to create a platform for refugees to discuss the issues they wanted to raise at the GRF and beyond. For more information, contact africarefugeesummit@gmail.com.

GRF update
ReDSS pledge: ReDSS members developed four pledges that will be presented at the GRF. 1. Area based planning and locally led approach: 2. Measuring collective outcomes: 3. Rethinking displacement financing: and 4. Regional and cross-border engagement. Click here for the pledge document.

ReDSS Briefing Paper for Global Refugee Forum Being finalised: the ReDSS briefing paper documents learning and best practice around the CRRF application in the East Africa region. The paper takes a thematic approach, highlighting new opportunities/new ways of working that the application of the CRRF has enabled in three key areas: 1) return and reintegration; 2) area-based and locally-led approaches and 3) regional and national level engagement around the CRRF process. Cross-cutting issues such as multi-stakeholder approaches, accountability and flexibility of working will be brought out across all themes. For more information contact Cate Osborn at c.osborn@regionaldss.org.

Ethiopia self-reliance spotlight session at Global Refugee Forum, Geneva, 16th of December: focusing on Building self-reliance and facilitating refugee integration in Ethiopia, ARRA, DFID, UNICEF, UNHCR, and ReDSS will share learning on efforts to promote the self-reliance of refugees and refugee hosting communities in Ethiopia. Click here for more information.

IGAD/UNHCR High Level Event on the Nairobi Process: Geneva, Switzerland, 16 December: IGAD and UNHCR are organizing a High Level Event on the Nairobi Process: A Regional Approach to finding solutions for Refugees, Returnees, and Host Communities. The High-level Event will take place on the margins of the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva, Switzerland, on 16 December 2019 from 11:30-13:00 at the Palais des Nations.

Ethiopia related events and full GRF programme: Click here for the GRF programme and here for key messages developed for Ethiopia related to the GRF pledge consultations. For more information contact Cate Osborn at c.osborn@regionaldss.org.