IDPaction

World Refugee Day: time to redouble efforts to protect the internally displaced

On the occasion of World Refugee Day, 20 June, the campaigning group IDP Action urges attention to be focused on internally displaced persons, those forced to flee their homes, but caught within their own state's borders. Across Africa, millions of IDPs are, in the absence of coordinated assistance, left at the extreme of vulnerability. IDP Action calls for IDPs to receive the same level of protection and assistance that has saved and enhanced the lives of countless refugees. Read more...

IDP Action is an independent advocacy organisation that works with others to address the problems faced by internally displaced persons at all stages of displacement.

Internally displaced persons – or IDPs – are people who are forced to flee their homes, but who, unlike refugees, remain within the borders of their own country. Responsibility for protecting and assisting IDPs remains with the state that has caused them to be displaced, which has been unable to protect them from becoming displaced, or which is unable to fully provide for their needs.

IDP Action defends and promotes the rights of IDPs in Africa. The organisation campaigns for stronger legal standards and protections for IDPs, better practical assistance to IDPs on the ground, and greater support to allow them to return to their homes and rebuild their lives.