A/HRC/26/33 D. Domestication and implementation 1. Requirements for domestication and the scope of national instruments on internal displacement 65. An effective response to internal displacement almost always requires a solid enabling policy and legislative framework. Existing laws can hinder the ability of internally displaced persons to realize their rights or might not ensure that the specific assistance and protection needs of displaced persons are met.30 The Convention therefore provides, in its article 3 (2), for the incorporation of States’ obligations under the Convention into domestic law by enacting or amending relevant legislation on the protection of and assistance to displaced persons in conformity with their obligations under international law. The same article requires States parties to take other measures, such as national and local policies and strategies on internally displaced persons, accounting also for the needs of host communities. 66. A comprehensive national instrument on internal displacement should mention relevant standards with regard to internal displacement, such as the Kampala Convention, the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and the Protocol on the Protection and Assistance to Internally Displaced Persons (for relevant States); adopt a holistic approach to displacement, from prevention to the achievement of durable solutions; and respond to all forms of displacement, irrespective of the causes. 2. Developing a national instrument on internal displacement 67. At present, six African countries have adopted or issued policies, laws or decrees relating specifically to internal displacement: Angola, Burundi, Kenya, Sierra Leone, the Sudan and Uganda. Other countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Somalia, are currently in the process of developing, or have already announced, draft national policies or legislation, a process that the mandate holder has continuously followed and supported. It is interesting to note that those countries are not systematically the ones who are legally bound by the Convention. Indeed, of the above-mentioned States, only Angola, Sierra Leone and Uganda are concerned, and the laws and policies developed by those States were adopted before their ratification of the Convention. 68. While the said laws and policies are a positive development, the domestic frameworks that have been adopted to date vary in scope, the guarantees of protection and assistance to internally displaced persons, and the coverage of relevant issues. Not all the laws and policies include an appropriate definition of an internally displaced person31 or clearly identify institutional responsibilities, and some address only a particular cause or stage of displacement, such as conflict or return, while others focus only on particular rights. 69. Significant activities in support of the development of national internal displacement frameworks to which the mandate holder has contributed include the Manual for Law and Policymakers, which provides guidance to national authorities seeking to develop domestic legislation and policies addressing internal displacement.32 Other documents providing guidance for developing a national instrument on internal displacement include a manual on 30 31 32 16 Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, Protecting Internally Displaced Persons: A Manual for Law and Policymakers, October 2008, p. 27. According to the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and the Kampala Convention, the fact of being an internally displaced person does not imply any legal status. An appropriate definition of an internally displaced person should encompass all causes of displacement. See footnote 30.