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Add to Preferred SourcesCivic leaders attending a key meeting in Geneva set out the positive contributions that refugees are making to cities worldwide.
There are a record 68.5 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, including 25.4 milion refugees. Around 60 percent of them live not in camps but in cities and urban areas.
Bristol, in the west of England, declared itself a “City of Sanctuary” for people fleeing violence and persecution, and strives to create a culture of welcome and safety for all.
“The thing we’ve learned by providing a safe haven is that if you do it well, and if you put a good support structure around it, win the support of the population and business and local government, that actually becomes an asset for the city,” said Mayor Marvin Rees.
“So it’s in our own interest, as well as creating a more vibrant culture – and when a place begins to access a diversity of thought, it becomes a place of innovation.”
Souad Zaidi, the deputy mayor of Rabat and member of Moroccan parliament, meanwhile said that refugees had brought benefits as they settled in the nation’s capital.
“This has been really very beneficial for the city of Rabat. Refugees and immigrants are now well integrated into society. They have the right to go to school. They have the right to public services. They have the right to health care. They feel right at home. Today Rabat is no longer a city people transit through. It’s a city that welcomes people.”
Original source: UNHCR
Published on 19 December 2018