The Politics and Practice of Refugee Participation in the Governance of the Global Refugee Regime
A guest lecture by Professor James Milner of Carleton University and Mustafa Alio of R-SEAT.
Abstract
This presentation examines the emerging norm of meaningful refugee participation in the governance of the global refugee regime (Milner, Alio and Gardi 2022). A prominent theme of UN agreements on refugees since 2016 has been a commitment to enhancing the role of refugees in the making and implementation of policies that affect them. As articulated in Paragraph 34 of the UN鈥檚 2018 Global Compact on Refugees: 鈥渞esponses are most effective when they actively and meaningfully engage those they are intended to protect and assist.鈥� This arguably reflects a belief that responses will be more effective and seen as more legitimate if refugees are involved in the design of refugee responses. This is a potentially significant area of innovation for the governance of the global refugee regime, especially given the regime鈥檚 history of claiming that the core institution of the refugee regime has the moral and expert authority to represent the needs and interests of refugees. In response, this presentation considers three questions: What is meant by 鈥渕eaningful refugee participation鈥�? What difference could refugee participation make in the governance of the refugee regime? And what critical questions should be raised in future work on the meaningful participation of refugees in the governance of the global refugee regime?
Speakers
is Co-Managing Director of : Refugees Seeking Equal Access at the Table. Prior to joining at R-SEAT, Mustafa Alio was a co-founder and former Managing Director of Jumpstart Refugee Talent, an organization devoted to the economic inclusion of refugees. In 2017, Jumpstart pioneered the Economic Mobility Pathways Program (EMPP), currently supported by IRCC to help resettle Ukrainian refugees. In 2019, Mustafa became the first refugee to formally represent Canada at the Global Refugee Forum. In 2021, he was awarded the Meritorious Service Decorations (Civil Division) from the Office of the Governor General in Canada. Mustafa sits on multiple national and international advisory boards. He has worked closely with multiple government partners, international refugee networks, UNHCR, civil society actors from around the globe, and other stakeholders to address gaps and improve programing that meet refugee needs internationally, and especially within Canada.
听
is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Carleton University in Ottawa. He is also currently Project Director of : The Local Engagement Refugee Research Network, a 7-year, SSHRC-funded partnership between researchers and civil society actors primarily in Canada, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon and Tanzania. He has been a researcher, practitioner and policy advisor on issues relating to the global refugee regime, global refugee policy and the politics of asylum in the global South. He has worked as a Consultant for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in India, Cameroon, Guinea and its Geneva Headquarters. He is author of Refugees, the State and the Politics of Asylum in Africa (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009), co-author (with Alexander Betts and Gil Loescher) of UNHCR: The Politics and Practice of Refugee Protection (Routledge, 2012), and co-editor of Refugees鈥� Roles in Resolving Displacement and Building Peace: Beyond Beneficiaries(Georgetown University Press, 2019) and Protracted Refugee Situations: Political, Human Rights and Security Implications (UN University Press, 2008).
