The estimate does not include those displaced by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) said, noting that its projections were based on data available at the end of 2025 in its annual displacement forecast.
The report found that displacement is increasingly spread across a wider range of countries, rather than being concentrated in a few major crises as in previous years. It also found that cuts in international aid are having a direct impact on displacement trends.
In the 5 countries expected to see the highest levels of displacement in 2025, funding for peace efforts fell by an average of 23% in 2024. By contrast, in the 5 countries where displacement declined the most, peace funding rose by an average of 15%.
“The international community is facing a catastrophic failure to protect the world’s most vulnerable,” DRC Secretary General Charlotte Slente said in a statement.
