Moreover, while family, friends and communities may initially welcome and assist IDPs, when their stay drags on, for months or years, strains on resources may lead to an eventual breaking point and the need for IDPs to find alternative assistance or living arrangements, often resulting in secondary movements and a more precarious situation. Even when specific IDP assistance exists in the form of food or other emergency assistance, distribution of assistance to non-camp IDPs, often tends to be one-off distributions at the beginning of displacement rather than the sustained assistance which is needed. Similarly, while State assistance programmes may sometimes be available for vulnerable groups in society, these will often be insufficient to take into account the heightened needs brought about by displacement, may be contingent on local residency or identity documents which IDPs may not be able to provide, or IDPs may not access them out of fear of drawing attention to themselves, for security reasons. Discrimination on the basis of their being displaced may also create an additional barrier to accessing State services. The considerations below aim to provide an initial framework for strengthening humanitarian and development responses to the needs of IDPs outside camps and those of their host communities.

The term "host community" has been used to depict a community hosting a camp, or a non-camp population. However it has also become a "catch-all" term, which often obscures the complexity and variety of communities in which IDPs live. The kinds of host communities vary widely across contexts. In many cases, 'host communities' simply refers to communities in which relatives or friends take in a family member. At other times, they refer to communities in locations to which IDPs have fled and remain during their period of displacement. Often host communities and host families may be poor or living in precarious conditions themselves. They may lack physical security, adequate access to basic services, and may have been impacted by conflict or a natural disaster as well. In some cases host communities are receiving new arrivals while in others they may be reintegrating returnees. In other contexts, such as those subject to repeated or cyclical displacements, host communities may be made up of IDPs who have simply been displaced longer.

The establishment of emergency assistance and complementary support structures are also necessary in order to address situations when host family arrangements break down or are insufficient. In many cases, the assistance and hospitality provided by hosts may be primarily based on affiliations with some members of the family and not others (e.g. one of the spouses), so that when the nuclear IDP family disintegrates during the period of displacement, some members may have to leave and find their own solutions. In other situations, the strains of assisting and providing shelter to IDPs for prolonged periods may be such that host families may simply no longer be able to continue providing this support unassisted. In all of these situations, IDPs will in many cases need to leave the host family. Ensuring that systems are in place to support hosting arrangements, and to provide protection and assistance alternatives for IDPs who can no longer remain in these arrangements, will be vital in order to prevent the most vulnerable IDPs from having to adopt negative coping mechanisms, such as early marriage, dangerous and exploitative livelihood activities, and from living in precarious settings.

IDPs are often the victims of direct or indirect discrimination in host communities based on their situation or categorization as IDPs. In some cases this discrimination may be based on ethnic or other differences, while in others it is due to more structural problems. In the context of his country visits, the Special Rapporteur has found that IDPs are often denied access to basic services such as primary education and health services, due to the fact that local schools or health facilities are already underfunded or overcrowded, or for purely bureaucratic reasons. In these contexts, local health and educational institutions may request proof of residency or special fees from IDP families (for services normally free of charge), so as to be able to effectively expand their services to them. Such situations reflect the need for more effective coordination and timely financial transfer systems between central and local authorities, including the areas from which IDPs fled, which can take into account a local influx of IDPs and their related needs.

Provincial and municipal authorities can play a key role in liaising with their national Government authorities and displacement-affected communities, as well as in the development and implementation of IDP-specific and community based programmes. Supporting local authorities in the development of community based programmes may be particularly appreciated when authorities must contend with the competing demands of other vulnerable sectors of the population who may feel their needs are being neglected. Such programmes should be based on disaggregated data on both IDPs and the host community, which includes their specific vulnerabilities, needs and coping mechanisms, and be participatory and inclusive. Community-based programmes can vary significantly depending on the context, but can include financial or in kind assistance to host families; community revitalisation programmes; or the expansion and strengthening of local infrastructures and services. Support to local authorities, through awareness raising and training, including on technical matters such as the conduct of consultative processes, data collection and programme design, should be areas for investment.

Provincial and municipal authorities responsible for local development, social services and security in their areas have a particular responsibility and interest in ensuring that IDPs outside camps, receive assistance in achieving durable solutions. In some cases, durable solutions will imply local integration in the host community, a process in which local authorities play a key role, and with regard to which the collection of good practices would be valuable. They can also however, contribute towards other durable solutions, including returns and resettlement elsewhere in the country, including by: ensuring that IDPs in their communities are identified and included in national durable solutions programmes; improving access to information for IDPs; and facilitating the transference of documents or benefits they may have acquired during their displacement. They can also facilitate transitional or a combination of solutions, such as permitting IDPs to retain certain rights, e.g. residency permits in host communities while they set up their new life in their area of return and ascertain its safety, or by facilitating procedures so that some members of the family may remain working in the host community while the rest of the family returns to the place of origin. Where IDPs originally from the host community are returning to it, local authorities will also play a central role in reinstating their rights, and addressing issues such as secondary occupancy which may emerged as a result of their prolonged absence.

[In view of the above, the Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations:] Compile good practices, identify gaps and develop specific guidance on arrangements and approaches to support host communities and host families, including: mechanisms to support, manage and monitor host family arrangements; and wider community-based approaches which enhance the absorption capacity and resilience of host communities, such as support to community infrastructures, services, and livelihoods. Work towards the establishment of more predictable and systematized support systems to host families and host communities, which are participatory, based on needs assessments, and combined with IDP specific interventions which address their particular needs and vulnerabilities, and maximize the achievement of durable solutions;

We recognize and support parents and families or, as the case may be, legal guardians as the primary caretakers of children, and we will strengthen their capacity to provide optimum care, nurturing and protection.

The experience of the past decade has confirmed that the needs and rights of children must be a priority in all development efforts. There are many key lessons: change is possible – and children’s rights are an effective rallying point; policies must address both the immediate factors affecting or excluding groups of children and the wider and deeper causes of inadequate protection and rights violations; targeted interventions that achieve rapid successes need to be pursued, with due attention to sustainability and participatory processes; and efforts should build on children’s own resilience and strength. Multisectoral programmes focusing on early childhood and support to families, especially in high-risk conditions, merit special support because they provide lasting benefits for child growth, development and protection.

The family is the basic unit of society and as such should be strengthened. It is entitled to receive comprehensive protection and support. The primary responsibility for the protection, upbringing and development of children rests with the family. All institutions of society should respect children’s rights and secure their well-being and render appropriate assistance to parents, families, legal guardians and other caregivers so that children can grow and develop in a safe and stable environment and in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding, bearing in mind that in different cultural, social and political systems, various forms of the family exist.

We are determined to promote access by parents, families, legal guardians, caregivers and children themselves to a full range of information and services to promote child survival, development, protection and participation.

Adequate housing fosters family integration, contributes to social equity and strengthens the feeling of belonging, security and human solidarity, all of which are essential for the well-being of children. Accordingly, we will attach a high priority to overcoming the housing shortage and other infrastructure needs, particularly for children in marginalized peri-urban and remote rural areas.

[In order to implement the present Plan of Action, we will strengthen our partnership with the following actors, who have unique contributions to make, and encourage the use of all avenues for participation to advance our common cause — the well-being of children and the promotion and protection of their rights:] Parents, families, legal guardians and other caregivers have the primary role and responsibility for the well-being of children, and must be supported in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities. All our policies and programmes should promote the shared responsibility of parents, families, legal guardians and other caregivers, and society as a whole in this regard.

[In order to implement the present Plan of Action, we will strengthen our partnership with the following actors, who have unique contributions to make, and encourage the use of all avenues for participation to advance our common cause — the well-being of children and the promotion and protection of their rights:] The mass media and their organizations have a key role to play in raising awareness about the situation of children and the challenges facing them. They should also play a more active role in informing children, parents, families and the general public about initiatives that protect and promote the rights of children, and should also contribute to educational programmes for children. In this regard, the media should be attentive to their influence on children.

Since the World Summit for Children, many goals and targets relevant to children have been endorsed by major United Nations summits and conferences and their review processes. We strongly reaffirm our commitment to achieve these goals and targets, and to offer this and future generations of children the opportunities denied to their parents. As a step towards building a strong foundation for attaining the 2015 international development targets and Millennium Summit goals, we resolve to achieve the unmet goals and objectives as well as a consistent set of intermediate targets and benchmarks during the course of this decade (2000–2010) in the following priority areas of action.

[To achieve these goals and targets, taking into account the best interests of the child, consistent with national laws, religious and ethical values and cultural backgrounds of the people, and in conformity with all human rights and fundamental freedoms, we will carry out the following strategies and actions:] Strengthen early childhood development by providing appropriate services and support to parents, including parents with disabilities, families, legal guardians and caregivers, especially during pregnancy, birth, infancy and early childhood, so as to ensure children’s physical, psychological, social, spiritual and cognitive development.

[To achieve these goals and targets, taking into account the best interests of the child, consistent with national laws, religious and ethical values and cultural backgrounds of the people, and in conformity with all human rights and fundamental freedoms, we will carry out the following strategies and actions:] Strengthen health and education systems and expand social security systems to increase access to integrated and effective health, nutrition and childcare in families, communities, schools and primary health-care facilities, including prompt attention to marginalized boys and girls.

[To achieve these goals and targets, taking into account the best interests of the child, consistent with national laws, religious and ethical values and cultural backgrounds of the people, and in conformity with all human rights and fundamental freedoms, we will carry out the following strategies and actions:] Ensure effective access by children with disabilities and children with special needs to integrated services, including rehabilitation and health care, and promote family-based care and appropriate support systems for parents, families, legal guardians and caregivers of these children.

[To achieve these goals and targets, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] Develop and implement special strategies to ensure that schooling is readily accessible to all children and adolescents, and that basic education is affordable for all families.

[To achieve these goals and targets, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] Strengthen early childhood care and education by providing services, developing and supporting programmes directed toward families, legal guardians, caregivers and communities.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] Address cases of international kidnapping of children by one of the parents.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] Encourage measures to protect children from violent or harmful web sites, computer programmes and games that negatively influence the psychological development of children, taking into account the responsibilities of the family, parents, legal guardians and caregivers.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] Resolve to strengthen international cooperation, including burden-sharing in and coordination of humanitarian assistance to countries hosting refugees, and to help all refugees and displaced persons, including children and their families, to return voluntarily to their homes in safety and dignity and to be smoothly reintegrated in their societies.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] Give priority to programmes for family tracing and reunification, and continue to monitor the care arrangements for unaccompanied and/or separated refugee and internally displaced children.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] In this context, protect children from all forms of economic exploitation by mobilizing national partnerships and international cooperation, and improve the conditions of children by, inter alia, providing working children with free basic education and vocational training, and integration into the education system in every way possible, and encourage support for social and economic policies aimed at poverty eradication and at providing families, particularly women, with employment and income-generating opportunities.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] Take necessary action, at all levels, as appropriate, to criminalize and penalize effectively, in conformity with all relevant and applicable international instruments, all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children, including within the family or for commercial purposes, child prostitution, paedophilia, child pornography, child sex tourism, trafficking, the sale of children and their organs, engagement in forced child labour and any other form of exploitation, while ensuring that, in the treatment by the criminal justice system of children who are victims, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] By 2005, ensure that at least 90 per cent, and by 2010 at least 95 per cent of young men and women aged 15 to 24 have access to the information, education, including peer education and youth-specific HIV education, and services necessary to develop the life skills required to reduce their vulnerability to HIV infection, in full partnership with young people, parents, families, educators and health-care providers.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] By 2005, develop and make significant progress in implementing comprehensive care strategies to: strengthen family and community-based care, including that provided by the informal sector, and health-care systems to provide and monitor treatment to people living with HIV/AIDS, including infected children, and to support individuals, households, families and communities affected by HIV/AIDS; and improve the capacity and working conditions of health-care personnel, and the effectiveness of supply systems, financing plans and referral mechanisms required to provide access to affordable medicines, including anti-retroviral drugs, diagnostics and related technologies, as well as quality medical, palliative and psychosocial care.

[To achieve these goals, we will implement the following strategies and actions:] By 2003, develop and/or strengthen strategies, policies and programmes which recognize the importance of the family in reducing vulnerability, inter alia, in educating and guiding children and take account of cultural, religious and ethical factors, to reduce the vulnerability of children and young people by ensuring access of both girls and boys to primary and secondary education, including HIV/AIDS in curricula for adolescents; ensuring safe and secure environments, especially for young girls; expanding good-quality, youth-friendly information and sexual health education and counselling services; strengthening reproductive and sexual health programmes; and involving families and young people in planning, implementing and evaluating HIV/AIDS prevention and care programmes, to the extent possible.

Strongly condemns all acts of violence against women and girls, whether they be perpetrated by the State, private persons or non-State actors, and calls for the elimination of all forms of gender-based violence in the family, within the general community and where perpetrated or condoned by the State, in accordance with the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, and stresses the need to treat all forms of violence against women and girls as a criminal offence, punishable by law, and the duty to provide access to just and effective remedies and specialized assistance to victims, including medical and psychological assistance, as well as effective counselling;