Refugee crisis: Staggering rise of displaced people in the world

As of 2017, more people have been forced by violence and conflict to flee their homes than live in the U.K. or France.

As of 2017, more people have been forced by violence and conflict to flee their homes than live in the U.K. or France.

That is more than 60 million people — a global nation of refugees. If all of these asylum-seekers, internally displaced people and refugees were a country, they’d be the 21st most populous nation in the world, according to UNHCR estimates. More than half of refugees are under the age of 18.

The crisis is the worst it has been since World War II, and it is not getting better.

This population will continue to grow as violent conflicts drag on and climate change wreaks havoc.

Host countries and refugee camps will increasingly become permanent homes to tens of millions of refugees while many wealthy nations turn their backs.

The top five places are Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar and Somalia.