How many refugees estimate the UN that they will need relocating in 2026. “Every place is priceless for those who run away from danger”

It is estimated that next year will need 2.5 million refugees, said the United Nations (UN) on Tuesday, at a time when the US and other nations reduce access to relocation, AFP reports.

UNHCR, the UN Agency for Refugees, estimates that the number will decrease slightly compared to this year, when it is believed that the number of refugees in need will be about 2.9 million.

“This is mainly due to the change of the situation in Syria, which allowed the voluntary return,” the UNHCR spokesman, Shabia Mantoo, told Geneva reporters.

“We notice that some people withdraw from the relocation processes in favor of plans to return home to rebuild,” she added.

Mantoo says that in 2026 the most numerous refugees who will need relocating will probably be Afghans, Syrians, South-Sudanese, Rhingya in Myanmar and Congolese.

According to UNHCR representative, most of the refugees will need relocation from the main host countries, including Iran, Turkey, Pakistan, Ethiopia and Uganda.

“The smallest relocation quotas in two decades”

The statements were made in the context in which UNHCR relocation efforts are facing huge obstacles.

“In 2025 (…) it is expected to be the lowest relocation rates in two decades, even falling below the levels recorded during the Covid-19 pandemic, when many countries interrupted their programs,” the UNHCR spokesman said.

Part of the decline is related to the US, for a long time the main destination for relocating refugees, which now has closed its doors. Shortly after returning to the White House in January, President Donald Trump stopped refugee relocation programs.

Mantoo insisted that the problem is not about one country.

“We have indications that a number of countries reduce or adjust the odds,” she said.

Singing that relocation, among other things, “offers a concrete alternative to dangerous travel”, Mantoo urged the countries to “support their programs”.

Recognizing that the needs far exceed the available places, UNHCR spokesman said about the international community that it has set its goal to relocate 120,000 refugees in 2026.

“Recent history shows that this is achievable,” she added.

Shabia Mantoo claims that, despite the challenges, UNHCR supported the relocation of 116,000 refugees globally last year.

“Each place is priceless for those who run away from danger,” concluded UNHCR representative.