The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) High-Level Officials Meeting was held online on 14-15 December 2021.
The meeting focused on consultations about expanding support through responsibility-sharing for refugees and host countries, implementing the commitments made in the 2019 Global Refugee Forum (GRF), and identifying areas where support is needed in the next Global Refugee Form in 2023.
Union of Municipalities of Türkiye and Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Fatma Şahin made a speech at the "Expanding Support through Sharing of Responsibility" panel where the local problems and suggestions of the Global Task Force on Migration were discussed on 14 December 2021 as part of the meeting.
Ms. Şahin gave information about the final declaration of the "International Forum for Local Solutions for Migration and Displacement" held in Gaziantep in December 2019. Mayor Şahin also presented the migration model of Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality and shared the local problems faced.
The panel has also reviewed the progress in expanding the involvement of states, the private sector and other actors critical to achieving the goals of the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR).
A Global Task Force on Migration was established right after the Gaziantep Forum in cooperation with the Union of Municipalities of Türkiye (UMT), Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality, UNHCR, International Organization for Migration (IOM), United Nations Development Program (UNDP), United Cities and Local Governments Middle East and West Asia Regional Organization (UCLG-MEWA) and World Local Management and Democracy Academy Foundation (WALD) in 2020 to provide an opportunity to municipalities to share good practices and experiences.