DEVELOPING COUNTRIES HOST 7 OF 10 ASYLUM SEEKERS WORLDWIDE - UN REFUGEE AGENCY
New York, Nov 8, 2002 1:00PM

While developing countries have produced 86 per cent of the world's
refugees over the past decade, they also proved to be a safe haven for
seven out of ten of those seeking asylum, according to a new statistical
yearbook released today by the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR).

The first annual "UNHCR Statistical Yearbook" notes that while rich
countries have been voicing increasing concern over the numbers of asylum
seekers arriving on their borders, it is mainly poor nations that have
been providing asylum to nearly three-quarters of the world's refugees
over the past 10 years.

High Commissioner Ruud Lubbers said the Yearbook would be a valuable tool
for those researching the evolution of global forced displacement, the
nexus between asylum and migration, and the sharing of burdens and
responsibilities. "Above all," Mr. Lubbers writes in the Yearbook, "I hope
it will provide a more solid underpinning for the current refugee and
asylum debate, and that it will contribute to informed policy and
decision-making."

According to UNHCR, the number of refugees between 1997 and 2001 has
hovered around 12 million after dropping by nearly a quarter compared to
the previous five-year period. While the total number of refugees has
remained relatively stable recently, their geographic distribution has
shifted.

The Yearbook shows that Asia has produced and hosted a larger share of the
world's refugees since the mid-1990s, while the number of refugees
originating from and hosted by African countries has fallen. In 2001,
Afghans made up one-third of the world refugee population and were also
the major nationality of origin of asylum seekers in industrialized
countries, although over 1.7 million Afghan refugees have recently
returned home and asylum applications from Afghans have dropped sharply.

Last year, asylum applications in industrialized countries rose by 8 per
cent. While Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Republic of
Korea and Japan received 31 per cent more applications and Central Europe
recorded a 33 per cent increase, the 15 European Union member countries
together saw a one percent decrease in applications.

The Yearbook also says the number of new refugee outflows since the early
1990s has declined by 38 per cent and that fewer refugees are crossing
international borders, but warned that the plight of internally displaced
people may well have become worse.

UN News Centre