In recent days, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has been sending extra teams to the Peru-Ecuador border to help manage the unprecedented numbers of Venezuelan refugees and migrants arriving.
Peru’s announcement of new visa requirements for Venezuelans triggered a surge in arrivals. Some had walked 30-40 days to find sanctuary, braving malnutrition, dehydration or medical problems. More children are arriving daily.
The pace of the exodus from Venezuela has been staggering. From 695,000 at the end of 2015, the number of refugees and migrants skyrocketed to over 4 million by mid-2019. Since November alone, one million have left.
Recently, the UNHCR released its annual Global Trends Report, updating the data on refugees and those in similar situations, as well as key themes of our work.
As in recent years, the trend is rising. In 2018, almost 70.8 million people were forcibly displaced, 2.3 million more than a year ago and double that of 20 years ago. Breaking down that sobering global figure, there were almost 26 million refugees–the most ever reported–3.5 million asylum seekers and 41.3 million people displaced inside their borders. Even the figure of 70.8 million is conservative. For example, of the 4 million Venezuelans, only close to 500,000 have formally applied for asylum.
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