2024 Global Report on Internal Displacement
IDMC's Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID) is the world’s leading source of data and analysis on internal displacement.
© Illustration by Matt Murphy / Handsome Frank
The millions of people forced to flee in 2023 were just the ‘tip of the iceberg’, adding to the tens of millions of IDPs already displaced from previous and ongoing conflicts, violence, and disasters.
- Alexandra Bilak, Director, IDMC
The global picture
Internally displaced people (IDPs)
Internally displaced people are those who have been forced to flee their homes as a result of conflict, violence, or disasters and who have not crossed an internationally recognized State border. This figure continues to rise as more people flee each year, adding to the numbers of those who have been living in displacement for years or even decades and have not yet achieved a durable solution.
What is the total number of IDPs?
The total number of IDPs is a snapshot of all the people living in internal displacement at the end of the year.
The number of IDPs continues to rise
The total number of people living in internal displacement increased by 51% over the past five years, reaching a record high of 75.9 million people across 116 countries at the end of 2023.
Why does the number of IDPs keep increasing?
New escalations of conflict such as in Sudan and Palestine forced millions of people to flee in 2023, adding to the tens of millions already living in displacement from ongoing or previous conflicts. Earthquakes, storms, floods and wildfires destroyed large numbers of homes, forcing even more people to remain displaced at the end of the year. In the absence of durable solutions to displacement, the number will likely continue to rise.
What is needed to reduce the number of IDPs?
Supporting return, local integration or resettlement, and addressing IDPs’ vulnerabilities, is essential. To prevent new and repeated displacement and end ongoing crises, governments need to reinforce conflict resolution, peacebuilding, disaster risk reduction, poverty reduction and climate action. Better data to inform prevention and response, as well as monitoring progress towards solutions, will help maximise the impact of these interventions.
IDPs by cause of displacement
Of the 75.9 million IDPs at the end of 2023 globally, 68.3 million were displaced by conflict and violence and 7.7 million by disasters.
Internal displacements in 2023
An internal displacement is a forced movement recorded during the year. The same person can be forced to move multiple times, and we count each one. For example, a person who flees conflict and goes to a displacement camp may be forced to flee again if the camp comes under attack or is hit by an earthquake, flood or other disaster.
What are internal displacements?
The internal displacements figure refers to the number of forced movements of people within the borders of their country recorded during the year. This helps capture repeated and multiple movements.
Conflict displacement remains high
28% fewer conflict displacements compared to 2022, mostly due to fewer movements in Ukraine as the front lines became more static. Still, global figures were 70% higher than the annual average of the past decade.
Key displacement situations
6 million
displacements by conflict in Sudan, the second-highest figure ever recorded after Ukraine in 2022
3.4 million
displacements by conflict in Palestine, its highest figure since data became available in 2008
707,000
displacements in Burkina Faso, the highest figure since the escalation of conflict in 2019
What are internal displacements?
The internal displacements figure refers to the number of forced movements of people within the borders of their country recorded during the year. This helps capture repeated and multiple movements.
Disaster displacement remains high
3rd highest figure in the last decade despite fewer displacements by weather-related hazards.
Key displacement situations
4.7 million
displacements by the Türkiye-Syria earthquakes, the highest figure for earthquakes since 2008
2.9 million
movements by floods in the Horn of Africa following years of drought
~2/3
of all displacements by wildfires were recorded in Canada and Greece
Internal displacement can happen anywhere
There were 46.9 million internal displacements, or movements, recorded during 2023, across 151 countries and territories. All but three of the 45 countries and territories that reported conflict displacement last year also reported disaster displacement. The 148 countries and territories reporting disaster displacement include high-income countries such as Canada and New Zealand which reported their highest figures ever.
No country is immune to disaster displacement, but we can see a difference in how displacement affects people in countries that prepare and plan for its impacts and those that don’t.
- Alexandra Bilak, Director, IDMC
Regional overviews
The scale and impacts of internal displacement can differ depending on the context. For example, the transition from La Niña to El Niño reduced the scale of storm displacement in East Asia and Pacific but triggered significant flood displacement in the Horn of Africa. The conflict in Gaza left 83 percent of the population internally displaced in less than three months at the end of 2023. Explore our regional analyses to get deeper insights into how displacement affects people in different parts of the world.
Internally displaced people (IDPs)
IDPs by conflict and violence
IDPs by disasters
Internal displacements (movements)
Internal displacements by conflict and violence
Internal displacements by disasters
Sub-Saharan Africa, which hosts 46 per cent of the world’s IDPs, was again the region most affected by internal displacement in 2023. Conflict and disasters overlapped in many countries, forcing people to flee again and/or prolonging their displacement.
Internally displaced people (IDPs)
IDPs by conflict and violence
IDPs by disasters
Internal displacements (movements)
Internal displacements by conflict and violence
Internal displacements by disasters
The conflict in Palestine contributed to an eight-fold increase in conflict displacements in the Middle East and North Africa in 2023 after three years of consecutive decreases. Disaster displacement figures were also the highest ever reported for the region, largely the result of earthquakes and floods.
Internally displaced people (IDPs)
IDPs by conflict and violence
IDPs by disasters
Internal displacements (movements)
Internal displacements by conflict and violence
Internal displacements by disasters
East Asia and the Pacific recorded the highest number of disaster displacements globally, although the figure was the lowest since 2017. Conflict displacement there increased for the third year running, mostly the result of the situation in Myanmar.
Internally displaced people (IDPs)
IDPs by conflict and violence
IDPs by disasters
Internal displacements (movements)
Internal displacements by conflict and violence
Internal displacements by disasters
Conflict and disasters triggered 47 per cent fewer displacements than the average of the past decade in South Asia, although disasters still uprooted millions of people from their homes.
Internally displaced people (IDPs)
IDPs by conflict and violence
IDPs by disasters
Internal displacements (movements)
Internal displacements by conflict and violence
Internal displacements by disasters
Severe storms in the Americas triggered fewer than half the displacements recorded in 2022 and fewer than a quarter of the annual average since 2015. Conflict and violence triggered the largest number of movements in the region since records began in 2009, with Colombia and Haiti accounting for 85 per cent of the total.
Internally displaced people (IDPs)
IDPs by conflict and violence
IDPs by disasters
Internal displacements (movements)
Internal displacements by conflict and violence
Internal displacements by disasters
Europe and Central Asia recorded by far its highest number of disaster displacements in 2023. The earthquakes in Türkiye accounted for most of them, but wildfire, storm and flood displacements also increased around the Mediterranean basin. Almost all of the conflict displacements recorded in the region were associated with the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Country spotlights
Downloads
Explore the latest displacement figures and analysis
Please contact us if you would like high-resolution maps or graphics or if you have research or other questions about our data and analysis.
Launch event
Watch the launch event which includes a keynote address from Jan Egeland, Secretary General of NRC, presentation of the GRID 2024 key findings and analysis and a panel discussion with high-level officials from Ukraine, the UN and civil society.
Press pack
Please see the Quick guide on how to read our data for definitions and links to information about our metrics and methodologies.
Alexandra Bilak
Director, Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre
Jan Engeland
Secretary General, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)
Vicente Anzellini
Global and Regional Analysis Manager
Ivana Hajzmanova
Global Monitoring Manager
Christelle Cazabat
Head of Programmes
Alice Baillat
Policy Adviser
Conflicts drive new record of 75.9 million people living in internal displacement
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The number of internally displaced people (IDPs) has grown by 50% in the last five years
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Conflicts in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Palestine accounted for nearly two-thirds of new conflict movements in 2023
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3.4 million new movements in the Gaza Strip in the last quarter of 2023, leaving 1.7 million internally displaced by the end of the year
Read the full press release
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For interviews or additional information, please contact:
Charlotte Rose, communications specialist, di:ga Strategy and Communications
Email: charlotte.rose@digacommunications.com
Mobile: +44 7838508273
Mark Gnadt, Head of Communications, IDMC
Email: mark.gnadt@idmc.ch
Mobile: +41 79 560 6289
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