Original: Spanish
(b) Actively continue binational cooperation between refugees’ country of asylum and country of
origin to find prompt and appropriate solutions.
(c) Strengthen international cooperation in the search for durable solutions, giving priority to
tripartite mechanisms for voluntary repatriation, emphasizing the experience of establishing
quadripartite coordination commissions between the country of origin, the country of asylum,
UNHCR and the refugees’ own representatives.
(d) Continue developing public policies to promote needed social, economic and protection
progress in the areas of origin of refugees and displaced population and to implement specific
assistance programmes for returnee populations to create the necessary conditions for
voluntary repatriation in dignity and safety.
The “Local Integration” Programme
The subregional consultations confirmed that, under current conditions, local integration is the
solution that poses the greatest challenges and is of great importance for the majority of refugees.
All the consultations stressed the need for public policies and legal and economic frameworks that
promote the local integration of refugees, highlighting the central role of the State but also the
fundamental role of local municipal authorities, host communities, the refugees themselves, the
private sector, civil society, and international cooperation through UNHCR and international and
regional development and financing organizations.
Based upon the recommendations of the subregional consultations, it is proposed that the “Cities of
Solidarity” programme be strengthened and updated through a new “Local Integration”
programme, which would include the following actions:
(a) Promote inclusive processes for the formulation of public policies and the corresponding
amendment of internal legislation for the integration of refugees.
(b) Strengthen the coordination of relevant governmental and non‐governmental institutions to
facilitate, within current legal frameworks, effective access for refugees to “solidarity‐based
public services”, such as health care, education, housing and employment, and learn from the
best practices on access to rights already applied by some countries in the region.
(c) Create policies and a regional legal framework that respond to the challenges posed by the
situation of binational families with regard to local integration and voluntary repatriation.
(d) Design policies and programmes at the local level to promote intercultural integration of
refugees and host communities, and acknowledge the contribution of refugees to community
development.
(e) Highlight the importance of personal identification documents, and of their issuance and
renewal, which should if possible be free of charge and expeditious, without mention of or
reference to refugee status, and promote their recognition by national banking systems.
(f) Facilitate the change of the migratory status of refugees from temporary residents to permanent
residents and naturalization processes, when so requested, through streamlined, accessible and
low‐cost procedures.
(g) Promote, to the extent possible, income‐generating or livelihood projects, as well as vocational
and professional training programmes, and the active participation of the public and private
sectors in generating employment for refugees through, for example, corporate social
responsibility programmes, access to productive projects, microcredit, State social programmes
and bank loans.
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