Publication: Refugees and Other Forcibly Displaced Populations
Loading...
Date
2025-05-19
ISSN
Published
2025-05-19
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
Forced displacement has reached unprecedented levels, with more than 120 million individuals displaced globally as of 2024 due to conflict, violence, climate change, and human rights violations. These crises are increasingly protracted, characterized by low return rates, and demand a shift from hosting models solely funded through humanitarian aid to financially sustainable, medium- to long-term strategies. This VoxDevLit synthesizes quantitative research conducted between 2010 and 2024, focusing on studies that use experimental or quasi-experimental methods to examine (1) the impacts of forced displacement on host communities and (2) the effectiveness of policies designed to support both forcibly displaced populations and their hosts. Key insights from this body of work indicate that forced displacement inflows generally exert neutral effects on native employment and wages, although vulnerable native workers—particularly those in the informal sector—may initially face challenges. Investments in inclusive social protection services that benefit both displaced populations and host communities can alleviate pressures and foster social cohesion. Additionally, cash transfers enhance immediate well-being and are most effective in the medium run when paired with initiatives that promote the economic self-reliance of forcibly displaced populations. Granting refugees the right to work has demonstrated transformative impacts on economic and well-being outcomes, while also providing a financially sustainable solution for hosting refugees over the medium to long term. Finally, addressing the mental health challenges faced by forcibly displaced populations is critical to enable them to recover their lives. This review underscores the importance of transitioning from humanitarian aid to self-reliance models, closing policy implementation gaps, and tailoring interventions to local contexts.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Rozo, Sandra V.; Grossman, Guy. 2025. Refugees and Other Forcibly Displaced Populations. Policy Research Working Paper; 11123. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/43206 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Citations
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Forced Displacement and Refugees in Sub-Saharan Africa(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-12)Most reports on refugees deal with the immediate needs of displaced people. This paper seeks to go beyond the emergency phase and explore the challenges surrounding protracted refugee situations. The paper examines the refugee situation in Sub-Saharan Africa from a long-term angle, from the perspective of refugees own agency as well as from the perspective of the host community. The paper aims to shed light on the economic lives of refugees in their host communities. Starting with an overview of the situation of refugees in Sub-Saharan Africa, the paper draws on findings from the literature to debunk some entrenched beliefs about refugees. The discussion of refugee crises in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda draws some lessons. The decision to return is discussed and it is argued that the decision depends on the socioeconomic condition in the host country versus the country of refuge, integration versus return policies in place, the individual set of skills of each refugee, and his or her subjective perception of the political climate in both countries.Publication Forced Displacement of and Potential Solutions for IDPs and Refugees in the Sahel : Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger(Washington, DC, 2013-10)The Sahel region has seen the forcible displacement of more than million persons as a result of conflict. Tackling displacement in the Sahel is critical for both poverty alleviation and stabilization, and only a development response will be adequate to the task. A development response to forced displacement in the Sahel requires a regional approach. Such an approach would have the benefits of being able to overcome challenges relating to cross-border movements, obtain commitments by host governments to support the prospects of displaced from neighboring countries, and facilitate common approaches, shared conceptualization and learning. The purpose of this scoping study on forced displacement is to contribute towards the formulation of a regional policy framework for sustainable solutions to displacement and towards the substantiation of a development response. The main challenges for the displaced populations include: i) livelihoods; ii) relations with host communities; iii) cohesion; iv) depletion of services; and v) governance. Measures to be taken to address the needs of these communities are: 1) improving the monitoring of population movement and knowledge on the locations, profiles and needs of the displaced, their host and return communities; 2) ensuring that the displaced and those affected by them can benefit from ongoing wider development investments in the region by designing 'displacement-sensitive' interventions; 3) strengthening services in affected areas through targeted regional investment programs; 4) employment creation and livelihood generation for those displaced; 5) delivering resources for the displaced in such a way that important outcomes are achieved; and 6) exploring the creative use of new technologies to extent information and development benefits to the displaced.Publication The Development Challenge of Finding Durable Solutions for Refugees and Internally Displaced People(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010-07-30)This note discusses the development challenge of finding durable solutions for refugees and Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs), and the relevance of this challenge for the World Development Report (WDR) on securing development in fragile and conflict affected settings. The note will describe (i) the scale, trends, and impact of forced displacement; (ii) the development challenge of finding durable solutions for those displaced; (iii) current practice on addressing this development challenge; (iv) the connections between the political, security and developmental aspects of forced displacement including regional spillover and impacts; and (v) suggestions as to what governments and the international development community can do in order to move beyond humanitarian emergency assistance and contribute to durable solutions for refugees and IDPs in return or displacement situations.Publication Forced Displacement of and Potential Solutions for IDPS and Refugees in the Sahel : Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger(Washington, DC, 2014-08)A development response to forced displacement in the Sahel requires a regional approach. Such an approach would have the benefits of being able to: (i) overcome challenges relating to cross--- border movements, (ii) obtain commitments by host governments to support the prospects of displaced from neighboring countries and (iii) facilitate common approaches, shared conceptualization and learning. A regional approach will be appropriate in the context of ECOWAS cooperation, as three of five countries suffering the heaviest displacement in the region are members of that organization, namely Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. The purpose of this scoping study on forced displacement is to contribute towards the formulation of a regional policy framework for sustainable solutions to displacement and towards the substantiation of a development response. This study, undertaken jointly by UNHCR and the Global Program on Forced Displacement (GPFD) in the Social Development Department (SDV) of the World Bank in June 2013, indicates that the main development challenges for the displaced in the region.Publication Assessing the Impacts and Costs of Forced Displacement : Volume 1. A Mixed Methods Approach(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012-05-01)Globally, over 40 million people have been forced to leave or flee their homes due to conflict, violence, and human rights violations either as refugees outside their country of origin or Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). A substantial number live in protracted displacement where return has not been possible.Forced displacement is a humanitarian crisis: but it also produces developmental impacts - short and longer term, negative and positive - affecting human and social capital, economic growth, poverty reduction efforts, environmental sustainability and societal fragility. A prevailing view is that refugees are a burden on the development aspirations of host countries and populations and that negative socio-economic and environmental impacts and costs outweigh the positive contributions (actual or potential) that forcibly displaced people might make. The losses incurred by the displaced populations themselves reinforce perceptions of vulnerability and dependency and thus assumptions of the burden they might impose. This study provides such a methodology. The development and drafting of the methodology and the state of the art literature review was conducted by the refugee studies centre, with valuable and constructive inputs from the partner organizations.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
No results found.