Worldwide refugee numbers hit all-time high, says UN

The number of refugees worldwide reached a record high in 2022, according to the U.N.’s refugee agency.

Russia’s war in Ukraine contributed to a record yearly increase of 19.1 million people fleeing from war and persecution, bringing the total figure up to 108.4 million at the end of 2022.

These figures come days after EU ministers secured a hard-won deal to set common asylum rules for the bloc and speed up migrant returns outside of Europe.

The UNHCR’s report published Wednesday confirmed that most refugees are hosted in developing countries which are closer to crisis areas.

According to the U.N. agency, 76 percent of the world’s refugees are hosted in low- and middle-income countries, with Turkey, Iran and Colombia topping the global ranking.

“Much more international support and more equitable responsibility sharing is required, especially with those countries that are hosting most of the world’s displaced,” said Filippo Grandi, the U.N.’s high commissioner for refugees.

The war in Ukraine increased the flow of refugees coming to Europe, with figures soaring from 27,300 in 2021 to 5.7 million in 2022 — the fastest outflow of refugees since the end of World War II.

The conflict in Sudan also triggered new migrant outflows in 2023, pushing the global total to an estimated 110 million by May this year.

In an interview with POLITICO last month, Hans Leijtens, the new head of Frontex — Europe’s Border and Coast Guard Agency — referred to the crisis in Sudan as one of the “triggers” of migration to Europe.

Germany was the EU country hosting the most refugees (2.1 million) in 2022, with Poland and the Czech Republic coming second and third.