GENEVA— The number of people forcibly displaced from their homes due to persecution, conflict, violence, human rights violations, and events seriously disturbing public order globally surged to 103 million in the first half of 2022, meaning that one in 77 people on Earth is forcibly displaced, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said.
This is an increase of 13.6 million, or 15 percent, compared to the end of 2021, more than the entire populations of Belgium, Burundi, or Cuba, according to the latest report from UNHCR.
According to the report, the total number of refugees and people in need of international protection worldwide rose by 24 percent from 25.7 million at the end of 2021 to 32 million by mid-2022. At the end of June this year, more than half (56 percent) of all refugees were Syrian, Venezuelan, or Ukrainian.
In mid-2022, the report showed, Türkiye hosted 3.7 million refugees, the largest refugee population worldwide. Colombia was second with 2.5 million and Germany third with 2.2 million refugees, followed by Pakistan and Uganda (1.5 million each).
The UNHCR report also showed that the number of asylum-seekers waiting for a decision had climbed to 4.9 million by mid-2022 from 4.6 million at the end of 2021.
In the first half of this year, more than 9.6 million new displacements due to conflict and violence were reported. The vast majority were in Ukraine, which accounted for 74 percent of all new internal displacements.
During the same period, significant displacements of people were also reported in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, as well as in Myanmar, Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Mozambique, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Source: Nam News Network