Durable Solutions in Malaysia

Durable solutions in Malaysia

The search for solutions for refugees has been a central part of UNHCR’s work since its inception. Traditionally, UNHCR has sought one of three durable solutions:

• Voluntary repatriation, where refugees return to their country of origin in safety and with dignity and re-avail themselves of national protection
• Local integration, where refugees legally, economically, and socially integrate in the country of refuge
• Resettlement, where refugees are selected and transferred from the country of refuge to a country which has agreed to admit them

In the Malaysian context, in the absence of a national asylum framework, UNHCR Malaysia continues its engagement with the Government of Malaysia to promote an inclusive refugee policy and a more enabling protection environment. Against this backdrop, resettlement is highly limited and accessible only to a small number of refugees with acute protection needs. UNHCR Malaysia also supports voluntary returns, facilitating return for those who choose to return to their country of origin, in line with the right to return.

Within this operational environment, UNHCR Malaysia has broadened its approach to solutions by supporting access to complementary pathways. These are safe and lawful avenues outside the resettlement programme through which refugees and asylum-seekers may enter and remain in a third country where their international protection needs can be met. Such pathways include family reunification, private sponsorship, as well as education- and employment-related opportunities. UNHCR Malaysia supports access to these pathways by disseminating information on verified opportunities, eligibility criteria and application processes.

More broadly, UNHCR Malaysia continues to work with a wide range of stakeholders - including refugee communities, the Government of Malaysia, resettlement states, states offering complementary pathways and countries where refugees originate, the private sector and civil society actors - to expand prospects for solutions and address root causes of displacement.