Government has reaffirmed its commitment to refugee protection and called for stronger international support as it outlined progress on its global pledges at the 2025 Global Refugee Forum (GRF) Progress Review Meeting in Geneva.
Addressing delegates in Switzerland, the Deputy Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Mercy Dinha said Zimbabwe remained firmly guided by the principles of the Global Compact on Refugees, with a focus on dignity, self-reliance and long-term solutions for displaced people.
"Zimbabwe remains fully committed to the founding principles of the New York Declaration, which gave rise to the Global Compact on Refugees," Dinha told the forum
She added that the country's approach prioritised "enhancing refugees' self-reliance, expanding durable solutions, and improving conditions for asylum seekers".
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Dinha warned, however, that displacement in the Global South was becoming increasingly protracted, driven by conflict, geopolitical tensions and climate-related disasters.
"Promoting sustainable peace by putting an end to wars in countries of origin is the most durable solution for safe, humane and dignified returns," the deputy minister said.
Reviewing commitments made at the 2023 Global Refugee Forum, the deputy minister said Zimbabwe had made significant progress on all six of its pledges.
She highlighted the allocation of 175 hectares of irrigable land to refugees at Tongogara Refugee Camp benefiting 590 refugee farmers and strengthening food security within the settlement.
"This initiative supports the nutritional needs of refugee families and the Tongogara Refugee Community at large," she said.
Zimbabwe has also expanded access to civil documentation, issuing machine-readable refugee passports, identity cards and birth certificates while extending the validity of refugee identity documents from two to five years.
Dinha said legislative reforms were under way to align the Zimbabwe Refugees Act with evolving global standards.
"The ongoing review is focused on promoting access to integration opportunities, working rights, and inclusion of refugees in social protection programmes," she said describing the reforms as consistent with the Global Compact's principle of humanity.
She added that refugee protection had been integrated into Zimbabwe's long-term economic planning framework, the National Development Strategy (2021-2030) which aims to transform the country into an upper-middle-income economy by 2030.
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Zimbabwe currently hosts nearly 14 000 refugees and asylum seekers with Dinha acknowledging the role played by the UN refugee agency and development partners in supporting national efforts.
"While the Government of Zimbabwe continues to spare no effort in meeting its protection obligations, it is imperative that this commitment be matched with sustainable donor funding," she said urging partners to honour pledges made in 2023.
The deputy minister paid tribute to the outgoing UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi thanking him for what she called his unwavering support to Zimbabwe and the global refugee protection system.
