BATHINDA: With the reported increase of almost 20% over the previous year, the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) worldwide reached 71 million by the end of 2022, according to THE Internal Displacement Observatory (IDMC) annual report.
The number of movements in which people fled in search of safety and shelter, sometimes more than once, was also unprecedented in 2022 at 60.9 million, a 60% increase from to the previous year. The conflict in Ukraine caused nearly 17 million displacements as people repeatedly fled fast-moving front lines, and monsoon floods in Pakistan caused 8.2 million, a quarter of the displacements related to global disasters of the year.
“Today’s displacement crises are growing in scale, complexity and scope, and factors such as food insecurity, climate change and escalating and protracted conflict are adding new layers to this phenomenon,” said IDMC Director Alexandra Bilak. “Greater resources and more in-depth research are essential to help understand and better meet the needs of displaced people,” he added.
Internal displacement is a global phenomenon, but almost three quarters of the world’s displaced people live in just 10 countries – Syria, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ukraine, Colombia, Ethiopia, Yemen, Nigeria, Somalia and Sudan – many as a result of unresolved conflicts that continued to cause significant displacement in 2022.
Conflict and violence have caused 28.3 million internal displacements worldwide, a figure three times higher than the annual average for the past decade. Beyond Ukraine, nine million, or 32% of the global total, were recorded in sub-Saharan Africa. The DRC had about four million and Ethiopia just over two million.
The number of disaster-related displacements increased by almost 40% compared to the previous year, reaching 32.6 million, mainly due to the effects of La Niña which continued for the third consecutive year. South Asia recorded the highest regional figure, overtaking East Asia and the Pacific for the first time in a decade. In the Horn of Africa, the worst drought in 40 years has triggered 2.1 million movements, including 1.1 million in Somalia alone, while fueling acute food insecurity across the region.
The general secretary of the Norwegian Refugee Council Jan Egeland described the overlapping crises around the world as a “perfect storm”.
“Conflicts and disasters have combined over the past year to deepen people’s pre-existing vulnerabilities and inequalities, causing displacement on a scale never seen before,” he said. “The war in Ukraine has also fueled a global food security crisis that has hit internally displaced people the hardest. This perfect storm has undermined years of progress made in reducing hunger and malnutrition around the world.
Better data and analysis are still needed to improve understanding of the relationship between food security and displacement, but IDMC’s report shows that the former is often a consequence of the latter and can have lasting impacts on people. displaced and host communities. Three-quarters of countries facing critical levels of food insecurity are also hosting displaced people.
Shedding light on this link is key to understanding how displaced people are affected by disruptions to food systems, but also how future investments in food security will be key to finding solutions.
“There is a growing need for durable solutions to address the scale of the challenges facing displaced people,” Bilak said. strengthen the resilience of their communities.
The number of movements in which people fled in search of safety and shelter, sometimes more than once, was also unprecedented in 2022 at 60.9 million, a 60% increase from to the previous year. The conflict in Ukraine caused nearly 17 million displacements as people repeatedly fled fast-moving front lines, and monsoon floods in Pakistan caused 8.2 million, a quarter of the displacements related to global disasters of the year.
“Today’s displacement crises are growing in scale, complexity and scope, and factors such as food insecurity, climate change and escalating and protracted conflict are adding new layers to this phenomenon,” said IDMC Director Alexandra Bilak. “Greater resources and more in-depth research are essential to help understand and better meet the needs of displaced people,” he added.
Internal displacement is a global phenomenon, but almost three quarters of the world’s displaced people live in just 10 countries – Syria, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ukraine, Colombia, Ethiopia, Yemen, Nigeria, Somalia and Sudan – many as a result of unresolved conflicts that continued to cause significant displacement in 2022.
Conflict and violence have caused 28.3 million internal displacements worldwide, a figure three times higher than the annual average for the past decade. Beyond Ukraine, nine million, or 32% of the global total, were recorded in sub-Saharan Africa. The DRC had about four million and Ethiopia just over two million.
The number of disaster-related displacements increased by almost 40% compared to the previous year, reaching 32.6 million, mainly due to the effects of La Niña which continued for the third consecutive year. South Asia recorded the highest regional figure, overtaking East Asia and the Pacific for the first time in a decade. In the Horn of Africa, the worst drought in 40 years has triggered 2.1 million movements, including 1.1 million in Somalia alone, while fueling acute food insecurity across the region.
The general secretary of the Norwegian Refugee Council Jan Egeland described the overlapping crises around the world as a “perfect storm”.
“Conflicts and disasters have combined over the past year to deepen people’s pre-existing vulnerabilities and inequalities, causing displacement on a scale never seen before,” he said. “The war in Ukraine has also fueled a global food security crisis that has hit internally displaced people the hardest. This perfect storm has undermined years of progress made in reducing hunger and malnutrition around the world.
Better data and analysis are still needed to improve understanding of the relationship between food security and displacement, but IDMC’s report shows that the former is often a consequence of the latter and can have lasting impacts on people. displaced and host communities. Three-quarters of countries facing critical levels of food insecurity are also hosting displaced people.
Shedding light on this link is key to understanding how displaced people are affected by disruptions to food systems, but also how future investments in food security will be key to finding solutions.
“There is a growing need for durable solutions to address the scale of the challenges facing displaced people,” Bilak said. strengthen the resilience of their communities.
