Refugees, forced to leave their homes and countries to flee persecution and violence, have been an unfortunate and inevitable product of conflict for as long as conflict has been a part of human society. Since its creation in the years following World War II, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has been at the forefront of assisting refugees around the world. As a result of conflict and instability in the developing world, particularly in parts of the Middle East and Africa, 2013 marked an especially challenging year for UNHCR and other refugee assistance organizations as they work to solve the persistent refugee problem. In UNHCR’s Global Trends 2013, released on World Refugee Day on June 20th, the agency examines new developments and challenges presented by the global refugee situation in the last year.
Who are the world’s refugees, where do they come from, and where do they go? It is estimated that of the 51.2 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, 16.7 million are refugees. Of that 16.7 million, 2.5 million were new refugees in 2013, making it the biggest year for new refugees since 1994. Of the world’s refugees, 50 percent are children.
Major conflicts almost always correspond directly with dramatic increases in the global number of refugees. At the end of 2013, Afghanistan and Syria were by far the two largest source countries, with each accounting for about 2.5 million refugees. Africa was the second largest regional source of refugees, with Somalia, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo accounting for a cumulative total of more than 2.2 million.
When refugees flee their home country, the most common course of action is to simply cross into neighboring countries. As such, the vast majority of refugees are hosted by the regional neighbors of their countries of origin. As the world’s largest source of refugees, it is not surprising that Afghanistan’s two largest neighbors, Pakistan and Iran, are also the world’s largest hosts of refugees. The two countries play host to about 1.6 million and 800,000 refugees respectively, almost exclusively from Afghanistan. The same is true of Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan, who each host hundreds of thousands of refugees from their neighbor, Syria. The influx of refugee populations can place a major burden on the host countries themselves. In Lebanon, nearly one in five inhabitants is a refugee. In Pakistan, there are 512 refugees for every 1 USD per capita GDP (PPP).
The biggest challenge surrounding the global refugee problem is finding durable solutions for refugee populations. Most developing nations are not equipped to adequately handle a massive influx of refugees across their borders, which means that refugees often have no choice but to dwell in refugee camps. The UNHCR does its best to assist refugees in finding long-term solutions to their situations, but with more than 11 million refugees around the world, that task is hardly easy. The voluntary repatriation of refugees to their home countries in situations where they will be able to safely rebuild their lives is the optimal solution. During 2013, UNHCR assisted in 206,000 of the 414,600 total voluntary repatriations of refugees. But of course, voluntary repatriation is only a viable solution for a small fraction of refugees, as the conflicts that forced them from their homes in the first place continue to rage on for years. When repatriation is not possible, the next most common solution is the permanent resettlement of refugees in other countries. In 2013, 98,400 refugees were resettled, 90 percent of whom were received by the United States, Australia, and Canada.
Although durable solutions for hundreds of thousands of refugees were found in 2013, that is still only a small fraction of the millions of refugees around the world. As refugee populations continue to grow as a result of instability and conflict, UNHCR still has an uphill struggle ahead of it as it seeks to find durable solutions for as many refugees as possible.
Meanwhile, traditional refugees represent only one part of a much larger problem, as the number of internally displaced persons grew by a record 8.2 million last year. As long as there is conflict in the world, eliminating the problem of refugees and other forcibly displaced persons may not be a realistic endeavor. But through the ongoing efforts of UNHCR and countless other organizations, hopefully the way in which the world can assist its refugee populations will only become more effective in the future.
Photo: Giancarlo Rocconi (cc).
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Refugees by the Numbers: 2013 Worst Year for Refugees Since Rwandan Genocide
July 12, 2014
Refugees, forced to leave their homes and countries to flee persecution and violence, have been an unfortunate and inevitable product of conflict for as long as conflict has been a part of human society. Since its creation in the years following World War II, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has been at the forefront of assisting refugees around the world. As a result of conflict and instability in the developing world, particularly in parts of the Middle East and Africa, 2013 marked an especially challenging year for UNHCR and other refugee assistance organizations as they work to solve the persistent refugee problem. In UNHCR’s Global Trends 2013, released on World Refugee Day on June 20th, the agency examines new developments and challenges presented by the global refugee situation in the last year.
Who are the world’s refugees, where do they come from, and where do they go? It is estimated that of the 51.2 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, 16.7 million are refugees. Of that 16.7 million, 2.5 million were new refugees in 2013, making it the biggest year for new refugees since 1994. Of the world’s refugees, 50 percent are children.
Major conflicts almost always correspond directly with dramatic increases in the global number of refugees. At the end of 2013, Afghanistan and Syria were by far the two largest source countries, with each accounting for about 2.5 million refugees. Africa was the second largest regional source of refugees, with Somalia, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo accounting for a cumulative total of more than 2.2 million.
When refugees flee their home country, the most common course of action is to simply cross into neighboring countries. As such, the vast majority of refugees are hosted by the regional neighbors of their countries of origin. As the world’s largest source of refugees, it is not surprising that Afghanistan’s two largest neighbors, Pakistan and Iran, are also the world’s largest hosts of refugees. The two countries play host to about 1.6 million and 800,000 refugees respectively, almost exclusively from Afghanistan. The same is true of Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan, who each host hundreds of thousands of refugees from their neighbor, Syria. The influx of refugee populations can place a major burden on the host countries themselves. In Lebanon, nearly one in five inhabitants is a refugee. In Pakistan, there are 512 refugees for every 1 USD per capita GDP (PPP).
The biggest challenge surrounding the global refugee problem is finding durable solutions for refugee populations. Most developing nations are not equipped to adequately handle a massive influx of refugees across their borders, which means that refugees often have no choice but to dwell in refugee camps. The UNHCR does its best to assist refugees in finding long-term solutions to their situations, but with more than 11 million refugees around the world, that task is hardly easy. The voluntary repatriation of refugees to their home countries in situations where they will be able to safely rebuild their lives is the optimal solution. During 2013, UNHCR assisted in 206,000 of the 414,600 total voluntary repatriations of refugees. But of course, voluntary repatriation is only a viable solution for a small fraction of refugees, as the conflicts that forced them from their homes in the first place continue to rage on for years. When repatriation is not possible, the next most common solution is the permanent resettlement of refugees in other countries. In 2013, 98,400 refugees were resettled, 90 percent of whom were received by the United States, Australia, and Canada.
Although durable solutions for hundreds of thousands of refugees were found in 2013, that is still only a small fraction of the millions of refugees around the world. As refugee populations continue to grow as a result of instability and conflict, UNHCR still has an uphill struggle ahead of it as it seeks to find durable solutions for as many refugees as possible.
Meanwhile, traditional refugees represent only one part of a much larger problem, as the number of internally displaced persons grew by a record 8.2 million last year. As long as there is conflict in the world, eliminating the problem of refugees and other forcibly displaced persons may not be a realistic endeavor. But through the ongoing efforts of UNHCR and countless other organizations, hopefully the way in which the world can assist its refugee populations will only become more effective in the future.
Photo: Giancarlo Rocconi (cc).
