International cooperation and the targeting of development assistance for refugee solutions: Lessons from the 1980s

‘Targeting development assistance for refugee solutions’ (TDA) is one of three
generic strands of UNHCR’s Convention Plus initiative, the other two being ‘strategic
resettlement’ and ‘irregular secondary movements’ (ISM). Its intention, like that of
Convention Plus as a whole, is to improve access to durable solutions through
improved north-south responsibility-sharing. In particular, it aims to facilitate local
integration and repatriation by incorporating refugees in national development plans.
It is hoped that by bridging the so-called transition ‘gap’ between humanitarianism
and development, there will be a greater likelihood of resolving protracted refugee
situations, which are often perceived to be a source of insecurity by host states and a
source of onward movements by third country asylum states.1 The debate builds upon
the legacy of the refugee aid and development (RAD) debate that identified the
multifaceted links and synergies between development and refugee issues.2
There are many factors in the debate surrounding Convention Plus that can be
considered to be new. At the political level, an increasingly “proactive” approach to
refugee issues and migration management is being pioneered by northern states,
encouraging more comprehensive engagement in regions of origin as an alternative to
asylum.3 At the UNHCR level, there is acknowledgement that the process of running
generic agreements alongside attempts to develop situation specific Comprehensive
Plans of Action (CPAs) may be new. However, many elements of Convention Plus
draw upon past precedent. In many ways Convention Plus’ emphasis on durable
solutions is an attempt to focus on the core elements of resettlement, local integration
and return that have been present throughout UNHCR’s mandate. The initiative
represents not so much radical innovation as an attempt to systematically apply the
lessons of past practice to contemporary circumstances.4