For years, many countries and regions have been holding their own Refugee Days and even Weeks. One of the most widespread is Africa Refugee Day, which is celebrated on 20 June in several countries.

The UN General Assembly, on 4 December 2000, adopted resolution 55/76 where it noted that 2001 marked the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, and that the Organization of African Unity (OAU) had agreed to have International Refugee Day coincide with Africa Refugee Day on 20 June.

The General Assembly therefore decided that, from 2001, 20 June would be celebrated as World Refugee Day.

The theme of this year’s observance is “Home” - and highlights the plight of the world’s 15 million refugees, more than three-quarters of them in the developing world, who have been uprooted from their homes by conflict or persecution.

On this observance of World Refugee Day, we must note a troubling trend: the decline in the number of refugees who are able to go home.

In 2005, more than a million people returned to their own country on a voluntary basis.  Last year, only 250,000 did so - the lowest number in two decades.  The reasons for this include prolonged instability in Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and southern Sudan.

The theme of this year’s observance -- “Home” -- highlights the plight of the world’s 15 million refugees, more than three-quarters of them in the developing world, who have been uprooted from their homes by conflict or persecution. 

For many refugees today, rapid urbanization means that home is not a crowded camp run by an international humanitarian organization, but a makeshift shelter in a shantytown, outside a city in the developing world.

As these cities continue to experience spectacular growth, refugees are among their most vulnerable residents.  They must struggle for the most basic services: sanitation, health and education.  The impact of the global financial and economic crisis only increases the threat of marginalization and destitution.

We in the humanitarian community must adapt our policies to this changing profile of need.  This means working closely with host Governments to deliver services, and intensifying our efforts to resolve conflicts so that refugees can return home.

• GA Resolution  55/76  on the observance of the Day
• Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees