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Conflict, Disasters Spark Record Number of Internally Displaced

Lisa Schlein

   GENEVA - A new report finds a record 50.8 million people globally are
   displaced within their own countries due to conflict, violence and
   natural disasters. The report, published by the [1]Internal
   Displacement Monitoring Center, part of the Norwegian Refugee Council,
   says an estimated 33.4 million people were newly displaced in 2019, the
   highest annual figure since 2012.

   The report says five countries -- Syria, Colombia, the Democratic
   Republic of Congo, Yemen and Afghanistan -- account for the majority of
   the 45.7 million people internally displaced by conflict and violence.

   Director of the Internal Displacement Monitoring Center, Alexandra
   Bilek, tells VOA much of the displacement last year was driven by new
   and ongoing conflicts and violence in West Africa and the Sahel, as
   well as ongoing local conflicts in Central Africa and the Horn of
   Africa.

   "So, countries that have been strongly affected by internal
   displacement over the last few years that are still experiencing new
   waves of violence and displacement every year, including in 2019,"
   saysBilek.

References

   1. https://www.internal-displacement.org/global-report/grid2020/

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