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Forced displacement: causes and flows

Sources, definitions and licences

How this globe counts people, which databases the figures come from, and the licences those databases carry.

Definitions

People outside their country

A person outside their own country is counted in one group: recognised refugees, people seeking asylum, or other people in need of international protection. The arrow count is the sum of the groups named on that line.

People still inside their country

Internally displaced people have left their homes and are still inside their own country on the date given. On the globe they are a ring, with the count and the date beside them.

A count of people on a date

A count of people is the number in a group on a stated date. For most arrows that date is the end of 2025. The card prints the date next to each count.

Displacements during a year

A displacement count records moves during a year. The same person can be counted more than once. That count stays on its own line, with its own date, beside the count of people.

Arrows

An arrow starts at the cause point and ends at an approximate country centre, or at a capital for a very large country. The line is an approximate direction. The label carries who was counted, where, how many, and the date.

Start dates

A start date appears when a named source confirms it. Ukraine is confirmed as February 2022. When a start date is not confirmed, the card says “Start date not verified” and leaves the date blank.

Venezuela

The sources used for Venezuela leave the cause open. The card uses the wording “Other or not yet classified”. The point uses the same red as conflict.

Credits and licences

Fix Planet drew this map. The figures are cited to the databases named here.

Numbered sources

  1. UNHCR Refugee Data Finder API (Refugee Population Statistics Database)

    CC BY 4.0 Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

    Open the source

  2. UNHCR Global Trends (web page, dated 11 June 2026)

    The page belongs to the publisher. The card cites the figure and the date.

    Open the source

  3. UNHCR Refugee Statistics methodology page

    The page belongs to the publisher. The card cites the figure and the date.

    Open the source

  4. UNHCR Sudan emergency page (updated December 2025)

    The page belongs to the publisher. The card cites the figure and the date.

    Open the source

  5. UNHCR Syria emergency page (updated December 2025)

    The page belongs to the publisher. The card cites the figure and the date.

    Open the source

  6. UNHCR Ukraine emergency page (updated December 2025)

    The page belongs to the publisher. The card cites the figure and the date.

    Open the source

  7. UNHCR Rohingya emergency page (updated December 2025)

    The page belongs to the publisher. The card cites the figure and the date.

    Open the source

  8. IDMC Internal Displacements (New Displacements) - IDPs, on HDX

    CC BY-IGO Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO

    Open the source

  9. IDMC Pakistan disaster displacements, on HDX

    CC BY-IGO Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO

    Open the source

  10. IDMC Somalia disaster displacements, on HDX

    CC BY-IGO Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO

    Open the source

  11. IDMC Ethiopia disaster displacements, on HDX

    CC BY-IGO Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO

    Open the source

  12. IDMC Kenya disaster displacements, on HDX

    CC BY-IGO Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO

    Open the source

Videos

Short videos from the crisis cards. Each one is on the publisher's own channel.