Third Session of Youth Summit 2025: Key Recommendations for Organizing Humanitarian Work in Displacement Camps

The third session of the Youth Summit 2025 was held on September 30, 2025, virtually via Zoom and live-streamed across digital platforms. Titled “Displacement Camps: Organizing Humanitarian Work Amid Chaos,” the session featured substantive discussions on displacement camp conditions and the mechanisms, and equity of aid distribution within them.

This session was part of the broader Youth Summit 2025, held under the slogan “Youth: From Crisis to Leading Recovery.” The summit spanned three days from September 28-30 in the Middle Area of the Gaza Strip and was led by a group of graduates of the Integrity School program, who had received intensive training over previous months in integrity, transparency, and dialogue and debate management.

The session was moderated by participant Ru’aa Abu Abadi. Participants included Hani Al-Ramlawi, Director of Development and Strategic Partnership for Palestinian Agricultural Relief; Amjad Al-Shawa, Director General of the Palestinian NGO Network – PNGO, and Hussam Soboh, Project Coordinator at the Social Developmental Forum.

Discussion Themes

The speakers discussed four main themes: the reality of internal displacement in Gaza, the challenges of managing displacement camps, the role of youth in organizing the field response, and ways to build a more efficient humanitarian management system.

Hani Al-Ramlawi began the discussion by stating: “What is happening in Gaza is an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe. An individual in a displacement camp barely obtains half a square meter, instead of the 3.5 square meters required under normal conditions, which has led to the spread of diseases and a complex social situation.”

He emphasized that the absence of a clear strategic plan leaves the situation vulnerable to further deterioration, calling for more sustainable solutions such as providing suitable caravans or tents, alongside stopping the genocide and opening crossings to allow the entry of essential resources.

For his part, Amjad Al-Shawa focused on the challenges of managing displacement camps, stating: “Civil society organizations were on the front line of the response, but they operated with limited resources, while most international institutions withdrew towards the south. The lack of a unified database for the displaced has caused significant confusion in aid distribution. Therefore, efforts must be aligned with the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.” He stressed the necessity of restructuring humanitarian work to ensure accountability and equity in distribution.

Hussam Soboh highlighted the pivotal role of youth during the genocide, explaining: “Young people were not merely beneficiaries; they were on the front lines, organizing the movement of people, innovating beneficiary registration systems, and tracking resources using simple tools. These experiences have demonstrated that youth are capable of managing crises when empowered.”

He noted that the Social Developmental Forum worked to train them on humanitarian standards and to embrace their initiatives, supporting them to affirm the role of youth, who have been on the front line of every humanitarian and developmental effort over the past months.

Key Recommendations: 

The session produced several key recommendations, the most prominent being the emphasis on establishing a main coordinating body that includes all parties from civil society and international institutions to youth teams and other relevant stakeholders. This was alongside calls to unify a dedicated database for the displaced, develop binding standards for managing displacement camps, and involve youth in administration and planning. The recommendations also stressed a shift towards a more sustainable response by providing dignified housing solutions like suitable tents or caravans. 

The session concluded by affirming that organizing humanitarian work amid chaos requires a comprehensive vision, one that begins with ending the genocide, proceeds by aligning efforts and databases, and culminates in empowering youth and the local community as essential partners in managing their own lives.

The Youth Summit

The Youth Summit 2025 held in partnership with the Coalition for Integrity and Accountability – AMAN, was established as an annual dialogue platform that brings together Palestinian youth with decision-makers and representatives of national and international institutions.

This year, the summit addressed pivotal issues such as the equitable distribution of aid, the future of education and work, and the role of youth in leading recovery efforts from the impacts of genocide. It emphasized that youth participation is a fundamental pathway to rebuilding a more just and accountable society.