Internally Displaced People and the new ‘Cluster Approach’

IDPs recieved great attention at UNHCR's Executive Committee meeting in 2005.

The UN’s Emergency Response Coordinator’s reform plan to allocate UN agencies lead responsibility for different ‘clusters’ of responsibility for IDPs needs, under the coordination of the UN Country Representative, was endorsed by members of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC)[1] and the UN World Summit prior to ExCom.

The High Commissioner spoke strongly in support of the plan. ExCom member states agreed to UNHCR’s expanded IDP mandate and three clusters of responsibility provided it does not detract from UNHCR’s core mandate to protect refugees and only if sufficient extra resources are provided to fund this work. 

Although UNHCR already