Internally displaced people at all-time high with 50.8M

ANKARA

A record number of 50.8 million people live in internal displacement worldwide as a result of conflicts, violence, and disasters, a study revealed on Tuesday.

According to the latest annual report of the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), 33.4 million new displacement cases were recorded in 2019, which is the highest annual figure since 2012.

"Some 8.5 million took place in the context of conflict and violence in countries like Syria, Democratic Republic of Congo [DRC], Ethiopia, South Sudan and Burkina Faso," it said.

According to the report, around 24.9 million new displacements were triggered by disasters, including 4.5 million by Cyclone Fani in India and Bangladesh, Cyclones Idai and Kenneth in Mozambique and Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas.

"Heavy and prolonged rains resulted in widespread flooding in Africa, resulting in two million new displacements," it said.

The statistics revealed that 45.7 million people in 61 countries, such as Syria, Colombia, the DRC, Yemen, and Afghanistan, were internally displaced due to the violence and conflicts.

Another 5.1 million people in 95 countries live in the conditions of internal displacements because of disasters.

Stressing the peace to stop displacements in the conflict zones, the report also warned states about the coronavirus outbreak.

The global coronavirus pandemic may increase the number of displaced people across the world, according to the report.

The Geneva-based IDMC was established in 1998 as part of the Norwegian Refugee Council. Since then, it analyzes internal displacements around the world.