LAS Holds Arab Regional Consultation Process on Migration, Asylum session

​The General Secretariat of the League of Arab States (Social Affairs Sector – Department of Refugees, Expatriates, and Migration Affairs) is chairing the 11th session of the Arab Regional Consultation Process on Migration and Asylum at its headquarters in Cairo on 14–15 May. 

The meeting will bring together focal points from Arab Member States responsible for migration and asylum affairs, alongside representatives from relevant international organisations and United Nations agencies.

 The opening session will be presided over by Minister Plenipotentiary Inas El-Farjani, Director of the Department of Refugees, Expatriates, and Migration Affairs at the General Secretariat.

The session will centre on recent developments in the follow-up and review mechanisms of the Global Compact on Refugees. Dr. Hanan Hamdan, Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to the Arab Republic of Egypt and to the League of Arab States, will deliver an address during the opening session. 

UNHCR will also present a detailed overview of the topic in a dedicated session. A specific segment of the first day's agenda is allocated for Member States to present their efforts in implementing and monitoring the Global Compact on Refugees and to share updates on the pledges made since the inaugural Global Refugee Forum in 2019.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) will also participate in the proceedings. Sahar Al-Jubouri, head of the UNRWA Representative Office in Cairo, will deliver remarks during the opening session, in alignment with the Agency's steadfast support for Palestinian refugees.

 This participation comes amid continued deterioration in conditions across the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and other UNRWA operational areas, exacerbated by a significant decline in international funding.

The meeting is expected to deliberate on and adopt the official statement of the Arab Regional Consultation Process, which will be submitted to the High-Level Officials' Meeting scheduled to be held in Geneva in December 2025. 

Additionally, the issuance of the consultation process statement in observance of World Refugee Day on 20 June remains a standing item on the agenda of these meetings.