Global Protection Forum S6: Strengthening Legal Aid & Access to Justice in Humanitarian Settings(EN)

Populations affected by humanitarian crises often lack or have very limited access to justice due to weak access to legal instruments, fragile legal frameworks and malfunctioning of institutions and infrastructure following conflict or disasters. Without legal support, displaced persons risk being denied a wide range of rights, access to basic services and, and face challenges to access legal advice. Yet, while legal aid is a vital means to access justice, it is not always considered as part of humanitarian work. This session was an opportunity to launch a new compilation of learning on relevant strategies and effective practices to strengthen legal aid and access to justice in humanitarian settings. Building on this, a variety of organisations shared their challenges and lessons learnt with a focus on coordination, partnerships and access to hard-to-reach populations.