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Pledges are voluntary commitments to carry out measurable actions and activities in support of Conference themes and implementation of the resolutions. They aim to enhance cooperation between Conference members on a number of Conference issues. The pledges are a powerful humanitarian diplomacy tool and can be used to initiate or advance dialogue and discussions with public authorities on the humanitarian agenda.

Pledges reflect the individual commitments of the Conference participants, tailored to their particular national or regional contexts and going beyond the consensus resolutions. They should reflect the Conference’s overarching theme, the three aspirations or be linked to the resolutions.

Pledge guidelines

The benefits of pledges

Pledges aim to enhance cooperation between the Conference participants on the range of topics addressed by the Conference. They are a powerful tool of humanitarian diplomacy and can be used to initiate or advance dialogue and discussions with public authorities on the humanitarian agenda before, during and after the Conference.

  • For Movement components (National Societies, the International Federation and ICRC) The development and follow up of pledges can provide a useful platform for discussions with Governments on the successes and challenges of implementing specific activities.
  • For Governments Through pledges, governments can plan specific activities they will undertake to implement the Conference resolutions. Pledges provide a way to demonstrate a government’s priorities and active engagement on specific topics.
  • For Movement components and governments together Joint pledges between a National Society and government (or groups of National Societies and governments) provide a mechanism set out joint plans and commitments, through which they also demonstrate their special relationship.
    Where a National Society and Government wish to develop a pledge together, it is recommended that they begin discussions well in advance of the Conference to identify topics of mutual interest and concern and agreed the specific commitment they will jointly undertake. Engaging in such a dialogue before the Conference can serve to highlight the practical benefits of co-operation. This dialogue continues during the Conference and beyond as the National Society and Government work together to implement, monitor and review progress on the implementation of the pledge(s). The entire process facilitates increased cooperation and builds the existing relationship between the National Society and its public authorities.

Types of Pledges

There are two kinds of pledges:

  • Specific pledges can be initiated by any member and observer of the Conference. These pledges should include commitments to concrete action tailored to the national/regional context. The pledge can be submitted individually or jointly between a National Society and their respective government or other organization that is an observer to the Conference. The implementation of these pledges is the responsibility of the signatory/signatories.
  • Open pledges can be developed by any member of the Conference and have the character of a petition. These pledges cannot be modified individually. The initiator of an open pledge is responsible for monitoring its implementation.
  • Model/example pledges texts on the Conference topics will be available on the pledge database. These examples are provided as a basis for specific pledges and are intended to be modified according to the contexts, interests and capacities of pledge signatories.

Pledging process

All Conference participants (members and observers) can submit individual or jointly prepared “specific” pledges and sign “open” pledges.

All pledges – specific and open – should be submitted and registered on the database by the participants. More details on the database and instructions are provided in the user guide.

  • For specific pledges Conference participants should submit their pledges online in any of the official working languages of the Conference (English, French, Spanish, Arabic). Model/example pledges on the Conference topics are available on the pledge database in all four languages.
  • For open pledges Petition-style open pledges should be initiated through the pledge database, where the initiator will indicate that the pledge is open for signature by any other Conference participant. All open pledges ‘available’ for signature are visible to all Conference participants on the pledge database, where they can also sign on.

For all inquiries on pledges, please contact  pledge@rcrcconference.org.

Results and follow-up

Once submitted and validated, all pledges are publicly visible and searchable via the pledge database.

As in previous years, all Conference participants are asked to report on steps they have taken to implement the Conference resolutions and any pledges they have signed. To facilitate this reporting within the database, a contact person is requested for each pledge registered.

The pledge database will also include a reporting section – please note that this section will be restricted and information entered there will be published in the public section of the database only with the agreement of the reporting organisation/government.

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Pledge map

Click a country to see all pledges associated with it.

For Conference observers, if you wish to make a pledge but do not yet have a user account, please contact pledge@rcrcconference.org.

Report to pledges

Conference members (National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, International Federation, ICRC and States Parties to the Geneva Conventions) are requested to report on pledges made and signed for the 32nd International Conference.  Reporting should be done through the online platform with pre-assigned user accounts. Please note that each institution can only have one user account.

User guide to the reporting database

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