The commitment made by CPR to expand and develop the community sponsorship program in Portugal was announced on the past 15th December. This pledge is part of a joint commitment, in which 41 entities, including civil society organizations, private individuals, the European Union and 8 governments, commit to expanding community sponsorship opportunities for refugees worldwide. The different pledges vary between increasing the numbers of people welcomed through these programs, as well as expanding and diversifying them.
The aim is to expand solutions in third countries for refugees around the world, improving possibilities for inclusion and strengthening narratives based on respect for human rights, by promoting communities themselves as active members of the welcome and integration of refugees.
These commitments were presented at the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) which took place from 13 to 15 December in Geneva, Switzerland. This constitutes the second Forum, since they were implemented with the Global Compact for Refugees, in which the international community comes together in solidarity to establish commitments and find solutions to improve the lives of refugees, as well as the countries and communities that host them. More than 4,200 people from 168 countries participated, with more than 10 thousand people joining online. Among the participants were state leaders, ministers, leaders of international organizations, representatives of refugee associations and civil society organizations, as well as private companies and foundations.
In total, the GRF mobilized more than 1600 commitments, including 43 joint pledges. The financial commitment was set at $2.2 billion and the participating countries agreed to undertake the resettlement of 1 million refugees by 2030 and a further 3 million welcomed through community sponsorship programs.
The CPR, through ComUnidade, has progressively assumed greater responsibility in the development and implementation of community sponsorship in Portugal. This is a commitment that we maintain and that we want to advance, allowing us to save more people, integrating them more effectively into Portuguese society thanks to the support of local communities, while strengthening them and involving citizens directly in welcoming refugees.
