With the number of people on the move now at a record total of 70 million – more than half of which are children – YMCA is stepping up its efforts to help refugees and migrants.
We are pleased to begin our first Global Summit on Migration and Immigration, taking place in Baltimore, Maryland, USA this weekend from 30 September – 2 October. Led by practitioners, the international YMCA family will come together to focus our efforts on more impactful outcomes and stand up for a dedicated humanitarian approach in this critical time.
Displacement, whether it’s induced by conflict, natural hazards or economic factors, impacts on people’s access to basic needs such as food and healthcare as well as the necessary tools to build futures with dignity: education and livelihoods. Many of the 36 million displaced children are also unaccompanied or separated from their families.
While YMCA already runs some programmes to help displaced people, we believe we can do more. In fact, we believe that it is our responsibility as our brothers and sisters’ keeper to do all that we can to help these people, who are some of the world’s most vulnerable. This is an essential part of our commitment to supporting young people and their families around the world.
The Global Summit on Migration and Immigration aims to:
– Assess our current contribution to the refugee and migrant crisis
– Create a community to encourage dialogue and learning best practices
– Develop a shared vision and strategic framework for enhanced coordination, communication, advocacy and innovation
– Establish a monitoring system to ensure our programs are effective
– Integrate a Summit into existing YMCA learning platforms on social inclusion through the DIG (Diversity,Inclusion, Global) Innovation Network Event
We are in touch with the UNHCR, the Office of International Migration and other organisations working to empower refugees and migrants to ensure we achieve the most effective outcomes across the board.