Latin America and Caribbean to discuss asylum, displacement and statelessness challenges of the coming decade

Ministers from across Latin America and the Caribbean are meeting next week in Brasilia to map out challenges to do with forced displacement and statelessness and to chart a 10-year plan of action aimed at strengthening protection across the region.

The meeting, on December 2nd and 3rd, will mark the 30th anniversary of the Cartagena Declaration - a 1984 landmark regional agreement on refugee protection that came about in the wake of major refugee crisis in Central America. It is being co-hosted by Brazil´s justice and foreign affairs ministries, and UNHCR.

A new Declaration and Plan of Action that's expected to be adopted in the meeting will focus on improving the quality of national asylum systems, dealing with mixed migration [ie, population flows involving migrants on the one hand and people in need of asylum on the other], especially in the Caribbean and protection needs of highly vulnerable groups such as people fleeing transnational organized crime. It will also cover solutions for refugees, statelessness, regional and international cooperation.

With over 6 million internally displaced, refugees, asylum-seekers and stateless people, Latin America has also recently been dealing with thousands of unaccompanied minors that are fleeing northwards and seeking safety in Central America and beyond.

High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres will be in Brasilia to attend the meeting.

For more information on this topic, please contact:

• In Bogota, Francesca Fontanini on mobile +57 312 457 28 04
• In Brasilia, Luiz Fernando Godinho on mobile +5561 8187 0978
• In Geneva, Babar Baloch on mobile +41 79 557 91 06