Uzhhorod, Ukraine - February 26, 2022: Ukrainian refugees with things rush to the Slovak border fleeing Russian aggression against Ukraine

The elephant in the room: In-donor refugee costs


By Carsten Staur, Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Chair


Why are DAC members reporting part of refugee costs in their own countries as Official Development Assistance (ODA)? A good question. Here’s the answer:

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A man and woman are seen in silhouette after breaching a border fence

Shifting our approach on migration from security to development


By Xavier Savard-Fournier, International migration specialist & Reporter and analyst of international affairs


It is right under our eyes, yet it is still hard to see for some. Not everyone experiences the same warm, welcoming attitude when crossing borders to seek refuge. As scores of people flee the war in Ukraine, many people of colour experienced discrimination, violence and racism or were blocked at borders.  Based on the same security-led migration narratives, similar cases have occurred since the European migration crisis of 2015-2016.

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forced displacement illustration

Le potentiel de la protection sociale en faveur des personnes déplacées de force


Par Jason Gagnon, Chef d’unité, Migration et compétences, Centre de développement de l’OCDE, et Jens Hesemann, Conseiller principal en politiques, Direction de la coopération pour le développement de l’OCDE/GPP, équipe Crise et fragilité


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Plus de 100 millions de personnes sont déplacées de force dans le monde aujourd’hui – chiffre jamais recensé auparavant. Les conflits armés, comme la guerre de la Russie contre l’Ukraine, continuent de chasser de plus en plus de personnes de chez elles, la plupart des personnes déplacées restant longtemps dans l’incertitude. Les pays à revenu faible ou moyen (PRFM) accueillent plus de 80% des réfugiés et des personnes déplacées internes dans le monde. Des politiques appropriées dans les pays d’accueil et une coopération au développement efficace permettent de trouver des solutions provisoires pragmatiques pour les personnes déplacées. Ces solutions provisoires sont gagnantes pour les communautés d’accueil comme pour les populations déplacées, l’intégration socio-économique offrant de multiples avantages.

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Photo of a man harvesting his field

The expanding threat to food security in least developed countries


By Brendan Vickers, Head, International Trade Policy Section; Salamat Ali, Economic Adviser & Trade Economist and Neil Balchin, Economic Adviser, Trade Policy Analysis, The Commonwealth Secretariat, London.


The number of severely food insecure people across the world is estimated to have doubled in the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic to 276 million. This number is expected to reach 323 million in 2022 due to the war in Ukraine. Least developed countries (LDCs) are particularly exposed to this crisis within a crisis: data from the Food and Agriculture Organization indicates more than 251 million people in LDCs are severely food insecure.

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forced displacement illustration

The potential of social protection for forcibly displaced people


By Jason Gagnon, Head of Unit, Migration and Skills, OECD Development Centre & Jens Hesemann, Senior Policy Advisor, OECD Development Co-operation Directorate/GPP, Crisis and Fragility Team


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There are over 100 million forcibly displaced people in the world today – more than ever before. Armed conflicts, like Russia’s war against Ukraine, continue to drive more people away from their homes, with most displaced people remaining in limbo for a long time. Low- and middle- income countries (LMICs) host over 80% of the world’s refugees and IDPs. With the right policies in host countries and supportive development co-operation, there is an opportunity to achieve pragmatic interim solutions for the displaced. This can be a win-win for the host communities and displaced populations alike, where socio-economic integration yields multiple benefits.

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Ukraine wheat food exports

Preventing developing economy debt disasters


By Rabah Arezki, Former Chief Economist and Vice President at the African Development Bank, Former Chief Economist of the World Bank’s Middle East and North Africa Region and Senior Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School & Mahmoud Mohieldin UN Special Envoy for Financing the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. 


The world’s breadbasket is being wrecked by war. Ukraine and Russia account for 30% of global wheat and barley exports and are leading exporters of other grains. The two countries are also the source of nearly 70% of the world’s sunflower oil exports, while Russia accounts for 13% of all crude petroleum exports. As the conflict in Ukraine rages and sanctions on Russia escalate, food and energy prices – which were rising even before Russia invaded Ukraine – are spiking in countries far away from the front lines, with devastating implications for the world’s most vulnerable communities.

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Collateral damage? The Russia-Ukraine conflict and energy transitions in Least Developed Countries


By Dr. Harry Verhoeven, Senior Research Scholar at the Centre on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University


Discussions about climate are, always, discussions about distribution- of costs, benefits and sacrifices. For years now, the grand bargain required to ward off the existential threat of human-induced global warming has been clear. Rich, developed economies need to swiftly and comprehensively decarbonise their energy and industrial systems in ways that both mitigate the intensity of climatic changes and that enable the planet’s poorest societies to follow a cleaner, more equitable growth trajectory. Doing so would generate time, resources and appropriate technologies for those currently marginalised in the global economy to respond more effectively to climatic upheaval. Understood as such, combating climatic changes should also help address those other mega-problems challenging 21st century civilisation: multidimensional poverty; yawning inequalities between and within countries; and the structural exclusion of hundreds of millions of people from access to public goods to which they are ethically and legally entitled.

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Support to Ukrainian refugees and official development assistance


By Haje Schütte, Senior Counsellor and Head, Financing for Sustainable Development Division, Development Co-operation Directorate, OECD


In the first week of the Ukraine war, roughly 6,000 people crossed the border into neighbouring countries every hour. This sort of displacement is unprecedented in modern day Europe. At the time of writing, two thirds of Ukraine’s refugees, mostly women and children, are hosted by Poland, Hungary and the Slovak Republic. 

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What the Russia-Ukraine war means for Bangladesh’s economy


By Fahmida Khatun, Executive Director at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD)[1]


Since the war between Russia and Ukraine began on February 24, 2022, the global economy has entered a new terrain of uncertainty. The war-induced challenges have surfaced on various fronts. With global economic integration, a crisis of such nature, which involves a country like Russia, is bound to impact other economies.[2]

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