The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) warns that official resettlement placements are running dry around the globe while humanitarian needs remain severe.

Only around 37,000 refugees have managed to leave conflict and violence in their home countries through UNHCR-supported resettlement initiatives last year, making a sharp fall from the over 116,000 departures in 2024.

Millions of refugees continue to face uncertainty amid global conflicts, leaving UNHCR significantly short of reaching its target of 130,000 resettlement places by 2027.

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UNHCR also stressed that expanding resettlement is essential to "protect vulnerable refugees, ease pressure on host countries and provide durable solutions for families unable to return home safely."

The Head of UNHCR's Durable Solutions and Field Protection Support Service, Jackie Keegan, meanwhile explained that the severe shortfall is based on a "combination of policy changes in destination countries that have led to pauses in admissions, more restrictive criteria and processing backlogs."

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Forgotten plight of Afghan refugees

In its report, UNHCR highlighted the particular plight of Afghan refugees in Iran and Pakistan, highlighting that Afghan nationals remain the largest global population expected to need resettlement in the long run.

The document stressed that the number of Afghans needing resettlement had fallen not due to an actual decline in need but rather due to more returns to Afghanistan, including forced returns, taking place under difficult and adverse circumstances.

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The report pointed out that after Afghanistan, the most important humanitarian crises requiring mass resettlement were those in South Sudan, Sudan, and Syria as well as the plight of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

The UN Refugee Agency has explained in the past that another reason for the slight downward trend in resettlement numbers was also due to the changed situation in Syria, which has allowed for voluntary returns.

This has led to some people pulling out of resettlement programs in favor of plans to return home to help rebuild the country after more than 13 years of civil war.

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Call to commit to greater refugee protection

"Regional needs remain highest across Eastern and Southern Africa, followed by Asia and the Pacific, and West and Central Africa," the paper further specified.

UNHCR underlined the fact that the countries that are currently hosting the largest refugee populations continue to feel pressure on their local systems and infrastructures.

According to the report, low- and middle-income countries host over two-thirds of the world's refugees, overwhelming public services and resources.

"Expanding resettlement is urgent and achievable. Increasing quotas, bringing more countries on board, and accelerating processing would ensure that this life-saving tool reaches more of those most in need," Keegan said, calling for greater responsibility-sharing among the international community.

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UNHCR has issued repeated calls on governments around the world to recommit to greater refugee protection mechanisms and to expand pathways to durable solutions for displaced peoples. 

The UN body added that resettled refugees often contribute economically and socially to their new home countries while simultaneously supporting their relatives in countries of origin.

"Resettlement is not charity, but an enduring solution that helps break the displacement cycle for future generations," the agency said. 

Resettlement is widely viewed as one of the few alternatives to embarking on dangerous, transnational journeys.

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