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Number of Refugees Accepted for Resettlement Drops Significantly

The United Nations refugee agency today said the number of refugees accepted for resettlement is dropping significantly.

The UNHCR also alled on countries to offer more resettlement places for the world's most vulnerable refugees, warning that unless a deal is reached this year nearly 100,000 people will be left "in an agonizing limbo."

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said 80,000 places for resettlement - offered to refugees who cannot return to their home countries or settle in the countries where they first claimed asylum - are currently available each year.

Janet Lim, Assistant High Commissioner for Operations at the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), addresses the high-level segment of the 16th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland. UN Photo: Jean-Marc Ferre

But as many as 780,000 refugees are estimated to be likely to need resettlement in the next five years, the agency warned in a press release issued from its headquarters in Geneva.

Last year UNHCR presented more than 108,000 refugees for resettlement, and about 73,000 were eventually resettled with the assistance of the agency, with the most going to the United States.

Worldwide, however, the number of refugees accepted for resettlement is dropping, due to stringent security checks and challenges faced by resettlement countries in managing their programmes.

The agency is calling on States to make places available outside their regular quota for resettlement, and to speed up their decision-making procedures and departure clearances to ensure these refugees can live in safety as soon as possible.

Source: United Nations