Encouraging support for greater burden-sharing by all countries, Switzerland Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis noted during the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva that his country had committed around $125 million over the next four years to refugee protection.

Although around eight in 10 refugees were hosted in developing countries, Swiss towns and cities were contributing to their protection by helping them to integrate into their communities, Cassis maintained, in his capacity as co-host of the Global Refugee Forum.

“Life is like a bicycle; you have to move forward to avoid losing your balance…This applies to all of us, we must not lose our balance and look ahead,” said Cassis, recalling a saying by Albert Einstein, one of the country’s most famous refugees.

He also underscored the positive role that could be played by religious partners in finding solutions to refugee protection and integration, citing the “unique” written accord between the country’s Christians, Jews and Muslims to this effect, based on “ethics and solidarity”.

More than 70 million people are forcibly displaced – double the level 20 years ago, and 2.3 million more than just one year ago, according to UN data.

More than 25 million of them are refugees, having fled across international borders, unable to return to their homes.