Complementarity: The Global Compact on Refugees and 1969 OAU Refugee Convention

The document argues that the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) complements the 1969 OAU Refugee Convention by providing modern mechanisms for burden-sharing and regional cooperation. It highlights the challenges facing the Convention, including a rise in forced returns (refoulement) and the pressure of hosting 7.4 million refugees and 17.8 million internally displaced persons in Africa. The brief suggests that the GCR's Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) can reinvigorate African solidarity and promote durable solutions through a 'whole of society' approach involving the private sector and international financial institutions.

• The 1969 OAU Refugee Convention's expanded definition of a refugee has significantly influenced African laws and policies and enabled the use of the prima facie approach to refugee status determination in countries such as Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, and Togo.
• Africa faced significant displacement challenges by the end of 2018, hosting 7.4 million refugees and 17.8 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), with the latter number being more than double the refugee population.
• The GCR supports the OAU Convention's goal of African solidarity and international cooperation (Article II(4)) by introducing a 'whole of society' approach and financial mechanisms, such as the World Bank's IDA18 regional sub-window which provided US$2 billion from 2017–2020 for refugees and host communities.
• Regional and sub-regional mechanisms, such as the IGAD-led Nairobi Declaration on Durable Solutions for Somali Refugees and Reintegration of Returnees in Somalia (2017), exemplify how the GCR's emphasis on regional approaches complements the OAU Convention.
• The principles of non-refoulement and voluntary repatriation have been undermined by protracted conflict and funding shortages; in 2018, UNHCR met only 55% of its funding needs, particularly affecting protracted situations in Burundi, DRC, Somalia, and South Sudan.
• Recent efforts to evacuate vulnerable refugees and asylum seekers from Libya to Niger and Rwanda demonstrate the spirit of African solidarity and the practical application of the GCR's burden-sharing goals.

APA

Abebe, T. T., Abebe, A., & Sharpe, M. (2019). Complementarity: The Global Compact on Refugees and 1969 OAU Refugee Convention. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/pb-135.pdf

Chicago

Abebe, Tsion Tadesse, Allehone Abebe, and Marina Sharpe. Complementarity: The Global Compact on Refugees and 1969 OAU Refugee Convention. Institute for Security Studies, 2019. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/pb-135.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Abebe |first1=Tsion Tadesse |last2=Abebe |first2=Allehone |last3=Sharpe |first3=Marina |title=Complementarity: The Global Compact on Refugees and 1969 OAU Refugee Convention |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=2019 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/pb-135.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{abebe2019complementarity, author = {Abebe, Tsion Tadesse and Abebe, Allehone and Sharpe, Marina}, title = {{Complementarity: The Global Compact on Refugees and 1969 OAU Refugee Convention}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2019}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/pb-135.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }