UNHCR states violence, insecurity & climate change displace 84 mn people from their homes

Nearly more than 84 million people worldwide have been forcefully displaced due to the rise in violence, instability as well as the consequences of climate change in several parts of the globe, the United Nations (UN) refugee agency, UNHCR stated in a newly issued data on Thursday, November 11. 

According to UNHCR's Mid-Year Trends report, which covered the data of the first six months of this year revealed that since December from 82.4 million, there is an increase of the internal displacement because a significant proportion of people have escaped from multiple ongoing conflicts around the world, particularly in Africa.  

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi stated, “The international community is failing to prevent violence, persecution and human rights violations, which continue to drive people from their homes,” UN reported. Further, the Mid-Year Trends report stated that during the first half of 2021, escalating war and violence throughout the world prompted approximately 51 million people to escape their homes within their own nations, the majority of whom were in Africa. 

UNHCR's Mid-Year Trends report reveals global figures of internally displaced people and refugees

According to the report, 1.3 million people were internally displaced in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Ethiopia saw 1.2 million displacements. Meanwhile, unrest in Myanmar and Afghanistan has increased the number of people forced to flee their homes. While at the same period, the number of undocumented migrants surged to almost 21 million in the first half of this year. 

Furthermore, the UNHCR has reported that the majority of new immigrants emigrated from just five countries, the Central African Republic with 71,800 asylum seekers documented, South Sudan with 61,700, Syria with 38,800, Afghanistan (25,200), while Nigeria with 20,300 refugees. 

In addition to this, Filippo Grandi urged the global community to step up its efforts to achieve peace while also ensuring that a sufficient number of resources are available to displaced people and their host nations.  

As per the UN report, COVID-19, violence, poverty, food shortages, and the climate catastrophe have exacerbated the humanitarian predicament of the displaced, who are mostly housed in developing countries. Highlighting the climate change issue, High Commissioner stated that it has increased existing vulnerabilities in many locations that are currently housed forcibly displaced people.  

Meanwhile, as per the report, just under one million internally displaced persons and 126,700 immigrants could return home during the first half of 2021. 

Grandi further added, “It is the communities and countries with the fewest resources that continue to shoulder the greatest burden in protecting and caring for the forcibly displaced, and they must be better supported by the rest of the international community.”  

Image: AP