Today, on World Refugee Day 2025, close to one in ten Australians is a refugee or descendant of someone displaced.
By the end of this year, Australia will resettle its one-millionth refugee since the end of World War II.
This is a legacy built through decades of bipartisan policy, community support, and the belief that when people are given safety and opportunity, they can contribute and thrive. It’s also a legacy that stands in contrast to our harsh treatment of people seeking asylum by boat, which continues to rightly attract criticism. Still, when it comes to refugee resettlement, Australia has a foundation of which we can all be proud.
The question is whether we will rise to meet the moment we are in now……………
…..In the past five years, nearly one million people from just eight refugee-producing countries were granted permits to live and work in OECD countries and Brazil through regular migration programs. That’s a 3-to-1 ratio compared to traditional resettlement.
Australia has played a key role in some of these early efforts. The Skilled Refugee Labour Agreement Pilot, developed in partnership with Talent Beyond Boundaries, has enabled hundreds of skilled refugees to migrate to Australia to fill workforce gaps. The Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot program has supported communities to sponsor and provide settlement support to incoming refugee families. And just last year, the Refugee Student Settlement Pathway was launched, allowing young refugees to study at Australian universities with a pathway to permanent protection.