Record 83 million people living in internal displacement worldwide: IDMC report

An unprecedented 83.4 million people were living in internal displacement at the end of 2024, according to the newly released Global Report on Internal Displacement 2025 (GRID) from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC).  

Conflict continued to drive much displacement. Last year alone, 20.1 million new conflict-related internal displacements were recorded, with 9.1 million coming from just two countries:  Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).   

“These figures are a clear warning: without bold and coordinated action, the number of people displaced within their own countries will continue to grow rapidly,” said IOM Director General Amy Pope. “The IDMC report is also a call for preventive action, to use data and other tools to anticipate displacement before it happens, and for the humanitarian and development sectors to work together with governments to develop longer-term solutions to prevent displacement.”   

The total of 83.4 million internally displaced people at the end of 2024 is an increase of 7.5 million from the 2023 figure of 75.9 million people, which was also a record.  

Disasters remained a major driver of internal displacement in 2024, and last year saw a record 45.8 million new disaster displacements, nearly double the annual average of the past decade. While most people were able to return home during the year, 9.8 million remained displaced due to disasters at the end of 2024. 

A total of 29 countries and territories reported their highest disaster displacement figures on record, with cyclones accounting for 54 per cent of all disaster displacements last year. As the frequency, duration, and intensity of weather-related events continue to worsen, these figures are expected to continue to rise. IOM provides key data for the GRID report, which is a crucial tool to shape policies, support evidence-based responses and inform durable solutions for the growing millions who are living in internal displacements worldwide.