3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

U a

10 infographics that show the

insane scale of the global
displacement crisis
By Lauren Parater, Associate Innovation Engagement OfficerJune 20, 2015

The media has been actively covering UNHCR’s recently released

Annual Global Trends Report which highlighted the insane fact that
worldwide displacement is at the highest level ever recorded. António
Guterres, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, said in the report
that the world is entering an era “in which the scale of global forced
displacement as well as the response required is now clearly dwarfing
anything seen before.”

The numbers coming out of the report are staggering to say the least.
Worldwide, one in every 122 people on the planet is now either a
refugee, internally displaced or seeking asylum. 59.5 million people
were forcibly displaced at the end of 2014 compared to 51.2 million a
year earlier and 37.5 million a decade ago.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 1/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

If this were the population of a country, it

would be the 24th largest in the world.

The report said war, conflict and persecution were the primary causes
for creating 14.4 million refugees last year, 2.7 million more people than
2013 and an almost 25 percent increase. This increase between 2013-
2014 was the highest ever seen in a single year.

Half of the 60 million displaced are children. Don’t worry, that wasn’t a
typo. That’s nearly 30 million children. How many of these children are
in primary school? One in two. Only one in four is in secondary school.
And university? Well, only 1%.

Yes these are indeed the numbers representing the world’s refugee
crisis. They’re almost unfathomable in my opinion.

What does 60 million people even look like?

When you imagine 60 million displaced, does it look that different from
40 million or 20 million? The numbers are so large it can be difficult for
some people to put that staggering “60 million people”  into visual
terms that can be fully understood.

So let’s try to put it into context. Imagine if every single English, Welsh,
Scottish, and Irish person currently living on the British Isles were
forced to flee their home. Or think about if every man, woman and child
living in Italy suddenly were displaced. Alternatively, what if the
populations of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman,
Qatar and Bahrain were made to live elsewhere.

You could also think about these numbers in days, hours, or minutes.

In 2014,  42,500 new people were displaced every single day. That’s
a new person forced to flee every other second.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 2/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

It will take you about five minutes to read

this article. In those five minutes 150 new
people will have been force to flee their
homes, leaving everything behind.

On #WorldRefugeeDay, I challenge you to think about what these

numbers mean for the state of our world and what you can do as a
fellow human being. Donate your time to the refugee cause, spread
awareness of the crisis and share the stories of these ordinary people
living in extraordinary times.

Here are 10 infographics from the 2014 Global Trends Report to help
you visualize what the global displacement crisis really looks like.

1. 42,500 people were displaced everyday during 2014. This equates

with every single person in a large city such as San Diego, USA or
Brussels, Belgium being displaced every single month.

2. A mere 126,800 refugees were able to return home in 2014, the
lowest number of returnees in 30 years.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 3/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

3. Nearly 12 million Syrians have been displaced. More than 7.6

million within Syria, and more than 4 million as refugees in
neighboring countries.

4. Lebanon hosted the largest number of refugees in relation to its

national population where one in five people is a Syrian refugee.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 4/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

 The equivalent per capita of the UK hosting nearly 13 million

refugees.

5. Colombia continues to have more than 6 million people who have

fled their homes due to violence — the highest rate in the world after
Syria.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 5/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

6. The numbers of people displaced by war are up 16% on 2013 –

when the total stood at 51.2 million – and up 59% on a decade ago,
when 37.5 million people were forced to flee their homes.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 6/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

7. 53% of all refugees in 2014 came from Syria, Afghanistan and

Somalia.

8. The 30 million children displaced by conflict are at risk of

becoming a lost generation; with most largely uneducated.

9. Those displaced by armed conflict, generalized violence, or

human rights violations at the end of 2014 equate to be some 38.2
million. This is unprecedented since 1989, the first year for which
global statistics on IDPs are available.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 7/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

10. The average duration of the 33 protracted refugee situations at

the end of 2014 is estimated to about 25 years.

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 8/9
3/8/2018 10 infographics that show the insane scale of the global displacement crisis - UNHCR Innovation

Did we miss any great infographics floating around the web? Link us to
them in the comments below and we’ll tweet them.

Photo credit: UNHCR / I. Prickett

If you’d like to repost this article on your website, please see our
reposting policy.

CONNECT WITH US

  

© 2018 UNHCR. All rights reserved.

Privacy Policy Terms and Conditions of Use

http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/10-infographics-that-show-the-insane-scale-of-the-global-displacement-crisis/ 9/9