The refugee crisis has haunted human civilisation for hundreds of years. A refugee is a person who has been forced to leave his/her country to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster. It is a grave problem that has been discussed at various social forums and on many different levels. From advising affected countries on how to handle such situation to implementing rescue work, activists and NGOs have tried everything possible to provide succour to these helpless and hapless refugees. However, this human tragedy continues to haunt us without any immediate solution in sight.
They are mothers longing to return home, fathers yearning to work again, children searching for a childhood. The refugee crisis is a crime against humanity, and a full-stop on this abhorrent cause would only make the world a better place to live.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 82.4 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced by the end of 2020 as a result of persecution, conflict, violence, human rights violations or events seriously disturbing public order. Among them are nearly 26.4 million refugees, around half of whom are under the age of 18.
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World Refugee Day is celebrated on June 20th every year to honour refugees from around the world. Here are the 10 largest ongoing refugee crises in the world:
1. Syria – 6.6million refugees
In March 2011, the Syria crisis accelerated dramatically than any other crisis on earth after a war erupted between Syrian and neighbour country’s forces. Meanwhile, Syrians continued to be the largest forcibly displaced population in the world. 10 years on, more than half of the pre-war population has been internally displaced or forced to seek safety in neighbouring countries. That’s more than 13.2 million people on the run, including more than 6.6 million people who have escaped across the borders.
2. Venezuela – 5.4 million
Years of economic and political instability in Venezuela caused millions of Venezuelans to leave the country since 2014. They migrated to seek food, work, and a better life, most of them to nearby countries. However, many Venezuelans still on the move lack legal status and need international protection and aid.
3. Afghanistan – 2.7 million
Forty years of conflict following the Soviet invasion in 1979 created 2.7 million refugees from Afghanistan. Political uncertainty and conflict have led to 2 million people being displaced in Afghanistan. Natural disasters and attacks on aid workers prevent those displaced from receiving much-needed support. Pakistan and Iran host most of these refugees.
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4. South Sudan – 2.2 million people
South Sudan is the youngest nation in the world after becoming independent from Sudan in 2011. In 2013, a civil war broke out causing 383,000 deaths due to violence and hunger. Meanwhile, 4 million people became displaced from their homes. Food insecurity caused by famines and war has left 5.5 million people hungry. Half of the refugee population was later put to relief through aid and other benefits but still, a major population is on the flee without any support.
5. Myanmar (Rohingya) – 1.1 million
Since violence broke out in Myanmar’s northern Rakhine State in August 2017, more than 742,000 Rohingya have fled to Cox’s Bazar in southeast Bangladesh. Before the crisis began, Bangladesh was already grappling with its own humanitarian challenges and hosting some 212,000 Rohingya who had escaped Myanmar during earlier periods of violence and persecution.
6. Somalia – 1 million
In both 2018 and 2017, over two-thirds of the world’s refugees come from just 5 countries, beginning with Somalia. The good news is that the number of Somali refugees around the world has, for the last several years, been on a slow decline. At the end of 2017, there were over 986,000. Now at the end of 2020, there are an estimated 905,000.
7. Democratic Republic of Congo – 1 million
Like the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo remains one of the world’s largest “forgotten crises.” Its displacement numbers, which have increased since 2019 moving it from Number 6 to Number 5 on this list, speak to that reality. Over 807,000 Congolese refugees were recorded in the summer of 2020.
8. Central Sahel – 0.8 million
Armed conflict, food insecurity and climate-related challenges, coupled with the devastating consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, have created a severe humanitarian crisis. It’s led many to leave their homes to survive. Currently, there are about 868,893 refugees from Central Sahel looking for a place to rest.
9. Central African Republic – 0.6 million
The humanitarian emergency in the Central African Republic is considered one of the most poorly funded crises in the world. In 2013, violence by armed rebel groups forced thousands to flee their homes. Over 623,400 people are living as refugees in neighbouring countries such as Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
10. Iraq – 0.2 million
The Iraq war started in 2003, but the displacement crisis didn’t emerge until 2014 when violence escalated in the northern part of the country. Attacks launched by the Islamic State (ISIL) gave rise to a conflict that forced millions of families to flee their homes and destroyed half of the country’s infrastructure.
