Increasing conflict worldwide, hunger and climate change led to a record number of displaced people in 2022, according to a report released by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) on Wednesday.
With 110 million people fleeing, two thirds of them within their home countries, and one third to neighbouring countries "it is quite an indictment on the state of our world," UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said.
The UNHCR global trends report showed three-quarters of all refugees crossing borders last year ended up in low- ord middle-income countries.
Grandi added it is wrong to assume all the refugees are headed for wealthy countries in Europe or North America.
The UNHCR said by the end of 2022, the number of displaced people stood at a record 108.4 million, up by 19.1 million from last year.
They added that the upward trend showed no sign of slowing in 2023 as conflict in Sudan had pushed the global total to an estimated 110 million by May.
Turkey took in the most refugees and people in need of protection in 2022 (3.6 million), followed by Iran and Colombia. Germany was behind with 2.1 million.
"Of all countries, it is the poorest that show the greatest willingness to take in refugees and bear the greatest burden," German Development Minister Svenja Schulze said in Berlin.
"This is why we must show solidarity with the host communities," adding that since 2014, the German government has implemented 300 projects in 78 partner countries to support people on the run and their host countries.
Most refugees came from Syria (6.5 million), Ukraine and Afghanistan (5.7 million each).
Grandi said the crisis in Sudan worries him. In addition to the already 3.7 million displaced people, 1.4 million people have newly been displaced within the borders, while hundreds of thousands have already fled to neighbouring countries.
Grandi warned that eastern Sudan was "a hot bed of traffickers," where a breakdown of law and order might push people to "Libya and beyond," noting that many refugee boats depart from Lybia for Europe.
According to a survey conducted by the children's aid organization World Vision in 18 countries, the situation of displaced people and their children has deteriorated, naming the consequences of climate change, the effects of the pandemic and inflation as reasons.
The number of families who can no longer support themselves has doubled within a year. "We are extremely concerned about the particularly high number of early marriages in Afghanistan and Niger," said Kristina Kreuzer of World Vision.
Grandi criticized the lack of political solutions for this conflict. Around 5.7 million internally displaced people returned home last year, while only 340,000 refugees returned home from abroad.
If richer countries offered more legal ways of immigration for migrants, fewer of them would apply for asylum, said Grandi.
Many asylum seekers are rejected because asylum and similar protection is reserved for people fleeing war, conflict, persecution and violence.
More migration options would also reduce life-threatening journeys for refugees. Just on Wednesday, dozens of migrants in Greece drowned after their boat capsized.
Grandi praised the efforts and progress being made on this issue, such as the European Union's recent talks on new migration policies. The EU agreed on measures which would see asylum seekers from relatively safe countries being held in detention-like conditions and their application process being sped up so that more people can be sent home faster.
Grandi said the agreement was flawed, but said at least the EU has agreed on something at all and there is movement on the issue of asylum and migration.
He added, however: "Our strong view is asylum seekers should not be put in jail. Seeking Asylum is not a crime."
