Never before have so many people fled as in 2022

71.1 million. So many people have had to leave their homes in their countries because of conflict, hunger and the climate crisis. That is 20 percent more than last year.

The number of people who had to flee their home country is also unprecedented: with 60.9 million, there was an increase of 60 percent compared to the previous year.

The reasons – and which people have sought refuge in Switzerland:

Climate change as a reason to flee

Never before have so many people fled in one year as in 2022, reports the Observatory for Internally Displaced Persons (IDMC). Natural and climate disasters have driven about 32.6 million people from their homes. 8.7 million are internally displaced, ie people who have had to flee within their country because of the climate crisis.

One of the main causes was the monsoon rains that hit Pakistan last summer. The floods caused a refugee influx of more than eight million people. Another trigger was droughts, such as those in the Horn of Africa.

Ukraine as the sad leader of displaced persons

The war in Ukraine has also contributed to the “unprecedented magnitude”. It is estimated that about 17 million people have been displaced, while about 5.9 million people fled Ukraine last year. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), around five million people have received protection in Europe alone.

The war in Ukraine has also led to a global food crisis, according to the DMC report, which has undermined the reduction of world hunger.

The international overview

The problem is particularly acute in 10 countries, which together account for three-quarters of those displaced, the Observatory reported: Syria, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ukraine, Colombia, Ethiopia, Yemen, Nigeria, Somalia and Sudan.

Even before the recent fighting, there were 3.7 million internally displaced people in Sudan. As the figures refer to 2022, the recent mass exodus following the outbreak of fighting in Sudan in mid-April is not included. At least 700,000 people have been internally displaced since mid-April. By May 9, at least 150,000 had already fled across the border to neighboring countries.

These people sought refuge in Switzerland in 2022

Most people seeking protection in Switzerland in 2022 came from Ukraine. Last year, about 75,000 people from Ukraine sought refuge in Switzerland. Because they receive protection status S, they do not count as asylum seekers.

Nevertheless, the number of asylum seekers will have increased in 2022 – by more than 60 percent compared to the previous year. 24,511 asylum applications have been submitted. Most requests come from people in Afghanistan, followed by Turkey, Eritrea, Algeria, Syria, Burundi, Georgia and Iran.

(cst, with material from sda)