United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
75th session of the Executive Committee
Statement by Iceland
14-18 October 2024

Madam Chair, High Commissioner, Excellencies.

Firstly, I thank the High Commissioner for an excellent statement at the start of our meeting.

Iceland is grateful as ever for the perseverance of UNHCR staff and partners, at a point in time where it is needed more than ever. The trend in numbers is clear: Two years ago, the number of refugees and displaced persons stood at 100 million; one year ago the number had risen to 110 million. Today, we are looking at a shocking 123 million refugees and displaced persons around the world, and the numbers keep growing. Let us always remember that behind these numbers are individuals, with hopes and dreams like anyone else on this planet.

Humanitarian workers risk their lives every day to serve those most in need. Their work is becoming ever more dangerous. Last year was the most dangerous on record. Iceland joins in honouring the memory of UNHCR colleagues in Lebanon who recently lost their lives, as have too many other humanitarian workers.

This loss of lives is but one manifestation of how respect for international humanitarian law is currently being put to the test, the very year that we mark the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions. To paraphrase the High Commissioner and going back to the very basics: Protecting civilians is a legal obligation. We must restore that collective commitment. Iceland calls on all parties to armed conflicts, whether in the Middle East, Sudan, Ukraine or elsewhere, to respect their legal obligations. International law must prevail, those who violate it must be held accountable and humanitarian access must be ensured.

Madam Chair,

In line with UN Security Council resolution 1325 and the Women, Peace and Security agenda, Iceland emphasises the role of women in decision-making. Conflict has gendered impacts and roots and taking this into account is paramount. Iceland remains deeply alarmed by the prevalence of sexual and gender-based violence, including in armed conflicts. We join calls for enhanced efforts to prevent and respond to it, including by UNHCR. Similarly, we highlight the need for an intersectional approach when addressing the protection needs of persons of diverse SOGIESC and other persons in vulnerable situations.

As we have heard this week, ending statelessness is an achievable goal. Iceland supports this goal, as signalled by our accession to the UN Conventions on Statelessness three years ago.

Madam Chair,

Iceland strives to be a predictable and flexible partner that prioritises quality funding in its financial contributions to the humanitarian system. For the past years, we have been systematically scaling up, and earlier this year we committed to providing multi-year core funding to UNHCR for the next five years.

We acknowledge that during these challenging times, flexibility is everything to an organisation that is increasingly having to respond on multiple fronts with little or no notice.

Unfortunately, as underlined by the High Commissioner, only 14% of total funding to UNHCR this year is completely flexible. This is highly concerning - at a time when agility can make the whole difference in terms of providing life-saving assistance and protection. In other words, lack of flexibility can be the difference between life and death.

Iceland believes in multilateralism and places its trust in UNHCR and the United Nations as a whole. We urge other partners to follow suit and prioritise quality funding.

In closing, Madam Chair, allow me to reiterate the commitment of Iceland to support the life-saving mandate of UNHCR. The humanitarian workers that “respond, stay and deliver”, regardless of the circumstances, have our utmost respect.

I thank you.