10 May 2019, Geneva – Sub-Saharan Africa experienced more internal displacement than any other region in 2018, according to a new report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).   

Unresolved and cyclical conflict combined with new waves of violence to trigger 7.4 million displacements between January and December 2018, an increase on 2017 and three times more than in the Middle East and North Africa. The Global Report on Internal Displacement also reveals 2.6 million new displacements associated with disasters, mostly weather-related. 

“Sub-Saharan Africa hosts some of the largest protracted displacement crises in the world. Emerging conflicts and the effects of climate change forced millions more people to flee last year, but many of these crises are overlooked and underfunded,” said Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s director.   

Conflict over resources and ethnic violence triggered 2.9 million new displacements in Ethiopia in 2018, more than in any other country worldwide and four times the figure for 2017. Regional clashes, fighting between al-Shabaab and pro-government forces and forced evictions also triggered the highest number of new displacements in a decade in Somalia. 

New waves of violence over scarce resources in Nigeria’s Middle Belt region combined with the ongoing insurgency of Boko Haram and other armed groups in the north-east to trigger 541,000 new displacements. The outbreak of internal conflict in the anglophone region of neighbouring Cameroon led to similar levels of displacement. New conflicts also erupted in countries such as Mali and Burkina Faso, linked to the emergence of extremist groups, intercommunal clashes and unresolved socioeconomic grievances. 

Around 16.5 million people were living in internal displacement as a result of conflict or violence in Sub-Saharan Africa as of the end of the year. More than three million were in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where decades of unrest continues to cause new displacements. Figures for DRC are highly conservative and do not capture the whole country.  

Record rainfall following several years of drought in eastern Africa led to devastating flooding in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia which, combined with storms, led to 820,000 displacements. Flooding in Nigeria affected 80 per cent of the country and triggered 600,000 new displacements.  

Internal displacement is an increasingly urban phenomenon. Conflict, climate shocks and large-scale development projects drive people from rural to urban areas, and such influxes present great challenges for cities and may aggravate existing risk factors. People who fled fighting in rural Somalia, for example, face abject poverty, tenure insecurity and onward displacement from flooding and evictions in Mogadishu. Displacement also originates in cities, whether triggered by conflict, disasters or infrastructure and urban renewal projects. 

“The fact that cities have become sanctuary to more and more internally displaced people represents a challenge for municipal authorities, but also an opportunity. Leveraging the positive role that local government can play in finding solutions to displacement will be key to addressing this challenge in the future,” said Alexandra Bilak. 

NOTES TO EDITORS:  

Regional press releases:  

Regional press releases detailing more specific displacement within geographical areas are available for sub-Saharan Africa, the Americas, Asia and Middle East and North Africa. 

About IDMC:  

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) is the world's authoritative source of data and analysis on internal displacement. Since its establishment in 1998, as part of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), IDMC has offered a rigorous, independent and trusted service to the international community. Their work informs policy and operational decisions that improve the lives of the millions of people living in internal displacement, or at risk of becoming displaced in the future.  

For interviews please contact:  

Frankie Parrish, Head of Communications, IDMC  
Email: frankie.parrish@idmc.ch   
Office: + 41 22 552 36 45  
Mobile: +41 78 630 16 78 

NRC  
Email: info@nrc.no   
Media hotline: +47 90 56 23 29 

Live interviews can be arranged today with Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s Director and Jan Egeland, NRC’s Secretary General.  

Landing page:  

From 10 May, visit www.internal-displacement.org/global-report/grid2019 to read and download the full report and summary; explore stories of displaced people and access a media pack, containing global and regional press releases, biographies of spokespeople, photos and b-roll.  

Follow IDMC on social media:  

Facebook: www.facebook.com/InternalDisplacement  
Twitter: @IDMC_Geneva 

10 May 2019, Geneva – Weather-related disasters triggered 1.7 million new internal displacements in the Americas last year, mostly in the US. Armed fighting and criminal violence in Central and South America gave rise to another 400,000, according to a new report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).   

California suffered the most destructive outbreak of wildfires in its history in 2018. More than 350,000 new displacements were recorded, 335,000 hectares of land burnt and more than 100 lives lost. The south-east coast of the US was struck by hurricanes Florence and Michael, which triggered nearly 850,000 displacements between them. 

“The United States, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, is heavily affected by disasters year after year, which demonstrates that anyone can be impacted by internal displacement,” said Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s director.  

The Global Report on Internal Displacement reveals that disasters also triggered 67,000 new displacements in Colombia. Notably when fears of a dam burst led to mass evacuations. Despite the 2016 peace agreement between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), fighting between other armed groups led to 145,000 new displacements, an increase on previous years.  

New displacement in Colombia was overshadowed, however, by the situation in neighbouring Venezuela. The government’s unwillingness to acknowledge the humanitarian crisis means that data on internal displacement is not available, but more than three million people are thought to have fled the country to escape economic meltdown, food shortages, service breakdown and increasing criminality.  

Colombia is estimated to be hosting at least a million Venezuelan refugees, and as many as 500,000 Colombians have also returned. Around 5.8 million people were living in internal displacement in the country as of the end of 2018, a figure second only to Syria.  

Gang and criminal violence continued to trigger new displacements in the Northern Triangle of Central America (NTCA). More than 240,000 were recorded in El Salvador and 950 in Honduras, though the latter is considered a significant underestimate. It was not possible to compile a reliable figure for Guatemala. Violence linked to the drug trade also led to 11,000 new displacements in Mexico, a similar number to those triggered by hurricane Willa in October. 

Internal displacement is an increasingly urban phenomenon. Conflict, climate shocks and large-scale development projects often drive people from rural to urban areas. The California wildfires were also a reminder of how urban expansion and the effects of climate change combine to increase people’s vulnerability to disasters and displacement.  

Many cities in NTCA are among the most dangerous in the world and the urban poor are particularly at risk of displacement by criminal violence and forced evictions, but new ways of dealing with the issue are emerging in cities such as Medellín in Colombia, where local governments and communities have taken the lead. 

“The fact that cities have become sanctuary to more and more internally displaced people represents a challenge for municipal authorities, but also an opportunity. Leveraging the positive role that local government can play in finding solutions to displacement will be key to addressing this challenge in the future,” said Alexandra Bilak. 

NOTES TO EDITORS:  

Regional press releases:  

Regional press releases detailing more specific displacement within geographical areas are available for sub-Saharan Africa, the Americas, Asia and Middle East and North Africa. 

About IDMC:  

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) is the world's authoritative source of data and analysis on internal displacement. Since its establishment in 1998, as part of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), IDMC has offered a rigorous, independent and trusted service to the international community. Their work informs policy and operational decisions that improve the lives of the millions of people living in internal displacement, or at risk of becoming displaced in the future.  

For interviews please contact:  

Frankie Parrish, Head of Communications, IDMC  
Email: frankie.parrish@idmc.ch   
Office: + 41 22 552 36 45  
Mobile: +41 78 630 16 78 

NRC  
Email: info@nrc.no   
Media hotline: +47 90 56 23 29 

Live interviews can be arranged today with Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s Director and Jan Egeland, NRC’s Secretary General.  

Landing page:  

From 10 May, visit www.internal-displacement.org/global-report/grid2019 to read and download the full report and summary; explore stories of displaced people and access a media pack, containing global and regional press releases, biographies of spokespeople, photos and b-roll.  

Follow IDMC on social media:  

Facebook: www.facebook.com/InternalDisplacement  
Twitter: @IDMC_Geneva 

10 May 2019, Geneva - Tropical storms, monsoon floods, conflict and violence displaced 13.4 million people across South Asia and East Asia and the Pacific last year, according to a new report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). 

The Global Report on Internal Displacement reveals that 9.6 million new displacements were recorded in East Asia and the Pacific, and 3.8 million in South Asia, an overall increase compared with 2017.  

“It is the same countries affected year after year and, while the relative impacts and resilience to respond varies hugely across the region, over time resources and coping mechanisms are being eroded. We must invest more heavily in strategies that reduce people’s exposure and vulnerability to the risks that cause internal displacement," said Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s director.  

East Asia and the Pacific was a disaster hotspot as in previous years, generating more internal displacement associated with natural hazards than any other region. The Philippines and China recorded 7.6 million new displacements between them, mostly pre-emptive evacuations as typhoons approached.  

Geophysical events such as earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions accounted for most of the new displacement in Indonesia, and monsoon rains and flooding displaced hundreds of thousands more in Myanmar. Japan was struck by an unusually high number of disasters from storms to landslides, and small island states in the Pacific were also affected by geophysical activity and floods.  

Conflict and other forms of violence triggered new displacement in the region on a much smaller scale, mostly in the Philippine region of Mindanao and Myanmar’s Kachin and northern Shan states.    

In South Asia, India recorded around 2.8 million new displacements, among the highest figures in the world. Monsoon floods, particularly in the south-western state of Kerala, and cyclones were responsible for the majority. Conflict and communal violence also triggered around 170,000 new displacements. The monsoon season also brought significant flooding to both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Drought triggered 371,000 new displacements in Afghanistan, a similar number to those associated with the country’s ongoing conflict. Intercommunal violence in Pakistan also triggered a similar number of new displacements to localised floods.  

Internal displacement is an increasingly urban phenomenon. Conflict, climate shocks and large-scale development projects often drive people from rural to urban areas. Dhaka, for example, is the preferred destination for many IDPs fleeing climate change impacts in coastal regions of Bangladesh.  

Displacement can also originate in cities, as was the case in Marawi in the Philippines, where intense urban warfare was waged by ISIL affiliates in 2017. A year later, reconstruction has begun but around 65,000 people remained displaced as of the end of 2018.  

Rapid urbanisation has increased displacement risk. Cities in East Asia and Pacific are expanding in areas highly exposed to hazards, such as the tropical cyclone belt and the Pacific Ring of Fire. Nor does urbanisation in South Asia equate with development gains, exposing already vulnerable people to the risk of secondary displacement in the form of evictions.  

“The fact that cities have become sanctuary to more and more internally displaced people represents a challenge for municipal authorities, but also an opportunity. Leveraging the positive role that local government can play in finding solutions to displacement will be key to addressing this challenge in the future,” said Alexandra Bilak. 

NOTES TO EDITORS:  

Regional press releases:  

Regional press releases detailing more specific displacement within geographical areas are available for sub-Saharan Africa, the Americas, Asia and Middle East and North Africa. 

About IDMC:  

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) is the world's authoritative source of data and analysis on internal displacement. Since its establishment in 1998, as part of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), IDMC has offered a rigorous, independent and trusted service to the international community. Their work informs policy and operational decisions that improve the lives of the millions of people living in internal displacement, or at risk of becoming displaced in the future.  

For interviews please contact:  

Frankie Parrish, Head of Communications, IDMC  
Email: frankie.parrish@idmc.ch   
Office: + 41 22 552 36 45  
Mobile: +41 78 630 16 78 

NRC  
Email: info@nrc.no   
Media hotline: +47 90 56 23 29 

Live interviews can be arranged today with Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s Director and Jan Egeland, NRC’s Secretary General.  

Landing page:  

From 10 May, visit www.internal-displacement.org/global-report/grid2019 to read and download the full report and summary; explore stories of displaced people and access a media pack, containing global and regional press releases, biographies of spokespeople, photos and b-roll.  

Follow IDMC on social media:  

Facebook: www.facebook.com/InternalDisplacement  
Twitter: @IDMC_Geneva 

10 May 2019, Geneva - Continued instability and obstacles to returning home once conflict is over mean that 11 million people were living in internal displacement in the Middle East and North Africa as of the end of 2018, according to a new report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). 

The Global Report on Internal Displacement also reveals that 2.1 million new displacements were recorded in the region between January and December 2018, mostly the result of ongoing and escalating insecurity in Syria, Yemen and Libya. Millions more previously displaced have been unable to return home because of safety concerns, destroyed homes and infrastructure, and a lack of basic services and ways to make a living.  

“Resolving protracted conflict, investing in recovery and reconstruction efforts and reinvigorating local economies to reduce poverty will all be key to promoting long-term stability and development in the region,” said Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s director. 

Syria’s civil war entered its eighth year in 2018 and continued to generate some of the most significant displacement in the world. Government offensives to retake areas of Idlib and Dara’a governorates and the Damascus suburbs triggered the majority of the 1.6 million new displacements recorded.  

Residents of Hodeidah in Yemen fled pre-emptively when fighting for control of the port escalated, and more than 250,000 new displacements were recorded across the country as a whole. At least 2.3 million people were estimated to be living in displacement as of the end of year, but the true figure is thought to be much higher.  

Despite the official end of the conflict with ISIL in Iraq in 2017, 150,000 new displacements were recorded last year. More than a million people were reported to have gone back to their home areas, but it was unclear whether their return was sustainable. Widespread destruction, unexploded ordnance, and lack of water, electricity, healthcare and work make it likely that many will be displaced again. Hostilities also escalated in Libya, leading to 70,000 new displacements. 

More than 200,000 new displacements associated with disasters were recorded in the region. Heavy rain in Syria uprooted people already displaced by the conflict when their camps were flooded. Two cyclones hit southern Yemen; flooding and drought triggered new displacement in Iraq and snow storms, earthquakes and flooding led to displacement in Iran.    

Internal displacement is an increasingly urban phenomenon, and urban warfare triggered mass displacement across the region in 2018. The battle for Dara’a city led to the largest single displacement event of Syria’s civil war, and most of the displacement in Libya took place in the cities of Tripoli, Derna and Sebha.  

Conflict, climate shocks and large-scale development projects also drive people from rural to urban areas. New ways of dealing with the issue are emerging in cities such as Mosul in Iraq, where local governments and communities have taken the lead. 

“The fact that cities are hosting more and more internally displaced people represents a challenge for municipal authorities, but also an opportunity. Leveraging the positive role that local government can play in finding solutions to displacement will be key to addressing this challenge in the future,” said Alexandra Bilak. 

NOTES TO EDITORS:  

Regional press releases:  

Regional press releases detailing more specific displacement within geographical areas are available for sub-Saharan Africa, the Americas, Asia and Middle East and North Africa. 

About IDMC:  

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) is the world's authoritative source of data and analysis on internal displacement. Since its establishment in 1998, as part of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), IDMC has offered a rigorous, independent and trusted service to the international community. Their work informs policy and operational decisions that improve the lives of the millions of people living in internal displacement, or at risk of becoming displaced in the future.  

For interviews please contact:  

Frankie Parrish, Head of Communications, IDMC  
Email: frankie.parrish@idmc.ch   
Office: + 41 22 552 36 45  
Mobile: +41 78 630 16 78 

NRC  
Email: info@nrc.no   
Media hotline: +47 90 56 23 29 

Live interviews can be arranged today with Alexandra Bilak, IDMC’s Director and Jan Egeland, NRC’s Secretary General.  

Landing page:  

From 10 May, visit www.internal-displacement.org/global-report/grid2019 to read and download the full report and summary; explore stories of displaced people and access a media pack, containing global and regional press releases, biographies of spokespeople, photos and b-roll.  

Follow IDMC on social media:  

Facebook: www.facebook.com/InternalDisplacement  
Twitter: @IDMC_Geneva