Some 35 million people lived in internal displacement in Africa at the end of 2023 as a result of conflict and climate disasters, a threefold increase since 2009. Climate-related disasters such as droughts and floods are driving increasing displacement across the African content, with the number of internally displaced people now six times higher than 15 years ago, a new report has found.
According to data compiled by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), floods accounted for more than three-quarters of all disaster-related displacements – which last year reached 6.3 million. In 2009, the number of people internally displaced by a disaster was 1.1 million. Western and eastern Africa were particularly affected by floods, mostly during the rainy season.
By 2050, more than 75% of the world’s population will be affected by droughts with an estimated 4.8-5.7 billion living in areas that are water-scarce for at least one month each year. Alexandra Bilak, IDMC director, described the situation as “absolutely critical, but not hopeless,” highlighting “many good examples” of governments actively working to address the root causes of displacement:
“It’s important for them to keep ownership of this issue and the international community to support their efforts,” Bilak said. “It’s not too late to help those whose lives have been upended when they were forced to flee their homes, but there is no time to lose. Helping them find solutions to their displacement is part and parcel of reaching a country’s development goals.”
Download the report by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) as PDF
