Between November 2010 and May 2011, UNHCR held a series of Dialogues with over 1,000 refugee, asylum-seeking and internally displaced women and girls, as well as over 300 men and boys in seven locations around the world. This formed part of a programme of activities to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 50th anniversary of the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, and built on the Five Commitments to Women and Girls made by UNHCR following a similar consultation process in 2001. The Dialogues were undertaken in cooperation with the Centre for Refugee Research at the University of New South Wales in Australia. They took place in both urban and camp settings in India (Delhi), Colombia (Medellín), Jordan (Amman), Uganda (Kyangwali refugee settlement), Zambia (Lusaka, also including refugees from the Meheba and Mayukwayukwa settlements), Thailand (Mae La and Umpium refugee camps), and Finland (Helsinki, including refugees living elsewhere in the country). For the sake of simplicity, this report refers to country names rather than the specific Dialogue locations: however, the findings do not necessarily apply to the UNHCR operation in these countries as a whole.
The Dialogues provided participants with a platform to share problems and develop solutions during several days of situational analysis workshops. A parallel workshop enabled men and adolescent boys to engage in the process and suggest ways to improve the protection of women and girls in their communities. Discussions focused on ten core protection areas: women in leadership, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), other forms of violence, legal issues, education, economic self-reliance, individual documentation, health, sanitary materials, and shelter. These were explored across the life cycle of women and girls as well as men and boys, with a focus on vulnerable groups such as unaccompanied minors, persons with disabilities and elderly persons. After an in-depth analysis of their protection problems, Dialogue participants worked together to develop practical solutions. They presented their recommendations to governments, UNHCR, UN and NGO partners, and – crucially – their own communities.