Population of concern
About 40 percent of the global population of concern lives in Africa. In 2019, this amounted to 33 million people, including refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons (IDPs), returned refugees, and stateless people. Refugees and internally displaced persons represent the largest part of the population of concern. Africa has the highest number of IDPs in the world. These are forced to leave their homes but remain within their country's borders.Poverty, political instability, wars, and terrorism are some of the causes that push people to seek shelter and asylum in another country. The majority of refugees in Africa are found in the Horn of Africa and the East region, with Uganda, Sudan, and Ethiopia hosting the largest number of refugees. In contrast, the majority of asylum seekers live in South Africa, Zambia, and Egypt. Refugees have their protection status recognized due to human rights violations and persecution in their country of origin, and they have a right to international protection. An asylum seeker, on the other hand, is seeking protection, but has not yet been legally recognized as a refugee.
