Disasters & Climate Change: Internally Displaced Persons and Refugees

The number of forcibly displaced people has grown from 33.9 million in 1997 to 65.6 million persons in 2016 due in large part to conflicts in the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. The rise in conflict globally has resulted in the occurrence of 20 displacements per minute last year and a new record high for the total number of people affected by displacement. As shown in the infographic by the Aid and International Development Forum (AIDF), there were 22.5 million recorded refugees in 2015, which is roughly the population of Australia and 24% of them were survivors of torture and/or violence. To view the infographic, click here http://www.aidforum.org/infographic/infographic-disasters-climate-change-internally-displaced-persons-and-refug

Disasters were responsible for 23.5 million new displacements in 2016, with 97% caused by weather and climate-related events. Almost 12.9 million displacements across the globe were resultant from the impact of storms such as Hurricane Matthew, which caused over 1 million people to be evacuated in Cuba alone.

More countries are participating in the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ (UNHCR) resettlement programme. A total of 189,000 resettlements took place in 2016, with largest instances of programme admission coming from the U.S. and Canada. Despite the increase in resettlement quotas, there is a great gap as 1.19 million people remain in need of resettlement.

The infographic has been published in light of the Global Disaster Relief & Development Summit (6-7 September, Washington D.C.). Humanitarian leaders and industry experts, including Christopher Smith, Director of Individual Assistance at Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), US Department of Homeland Security, Anna Spindler, Head of Supply Chain Management Logistics Service at UNHCR and Dr Joe Leitmann, Lead Disaster Risk Management Specialist, Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery at World Bank Group will share best practice and technological innovations to help strengthen disaster management capacities and improve livelihoods. See the full list of confirmed speakers here http://disaster-relief.aidforum.org/speakers

Take advantage of unparalleled networking opportunities at the Global Disaster Relief & Development Summit with over 300 high-level participants to exchange ideas, establish partnerships and benefit from prospective business opportunities. Register your participation at http://disaster-relief.aidforum.org/register

For all enquiries, please contact Alina O’Keeffe, Head of Marketing, AIDF at marketing@aidforum.org

The Aid and International Development Forum (AIDF) is the world leading forum specialising in disaster relief, resilience, mobile for development, food security and water security.

We unite all stakeholders from government, UN agencies, intergovernmental agencies, NGOs and the private sector by providing a platform for independent debate and knowledge exchange, and for establishing long-lasting partnerships. For over 13 years, AIDF has been committed to improving aid and international development through research and high profile events held at the UN and government buildings in Asia, Africa, North America and Europe.

Alina O'Keeffe
Head of Marketing
Aid & International Development Forum
3rd Floor, Two America Square, London, EC3N 2LU
+44 (0)20 7871 0188

This release was published on openPR.