
Today is World Refugee Day. Ahead of the day, the annual 'Global Trends Report' of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR, published in Geneva on June 5, said that the number of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) worldwide due to war, violence and persecution stood at 121 million at the end of April 2025, which is the highest in a decade. Currently, the world has the largest number of refugees and IDPs from 4 countries, namely Sudanese 14.3 million, Syrian 13.5 million, Afghan 13 million and Ukrainian 8.8 million. Incidentally, until the Gaza ceasefire (January 19), the number of Palestinian refugees was 1.9 million, which may seem small in terms of numbers, but this number is 79 percent of the total population of Gaza (2.4 million).
The United Nations has been celebrating World Refugee Day every year since 2001 to express solidarity with refugees. By the way, the UNHCR was established in 1950 to facilitate activities related to the interests of refugees (settlement, humanitarian assistance coordination, coordination with the countries concerned, repatriation processes, etc.). According to the UNHCR, "a refugee is a person forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as a result of who they are, what they believe in or say, or because of armed conflict, violence or serious public disorder". According to the UNHCR, IDPs are also refugees because they are displaced from their home, even though they do not leave their country.
Regardless of their location, refugees are often not treated humanely, but are considered helpless, and their repatriation and rehabilitation are neglected. The focus of World Refugee Day is 'Solidarity with Refugees', which emphasizes the rights, conditions, livelihoods and repatriation of refugees.

The UN Refugee Convention was signed in 1951 to ensure the rights and interests of refugees, although the initiative at that time focused on the interests of European refugees who took refuge in various countries of Europe after World War II. This convention was made universal by the signing of a protocol in 1967. According to the convention, refugees are entitled to 10 rights: namely 1. Not to be expelled 2. Not to be punished for infiltration 3. The right to work 4. Shelter 5. Education 6. To receive relief and assistance 7. Freedom of religion 8. Legal facilities 9. Freedom of movement within the country and 10. To obtain identity and travel documents. As is known, Bangladesh is not bound to abide by some of these conditions, such as granting refugees free movement within the country, issuing identity cards, and granting them the right to work since it (Bangladesh) has not signed the Convention and the Protocol. It is worth noting that in the past, the UN proposed the integration of the Rohingyas in the country, which the Bangladesh government rejected.
“Bangladesh has also sheltered more than 700,000 Rohingyas who entered
from Myanmar's Rakhine state since 2016-17, who are currently staying in
33 camps in Ukhia and Teknaf in Cox's Bazar and Bhasan Char”
The world's largest refugee-hosting countries include Iran (3.5 million), Turkey (2.9 million), Colombia (2.8 million), Germany (2.7 million) and Uganda (1.8 million). Bangladesh has also sheltered more than 700,000 Rohingyas who entered from Myanmar's Rakhine state since 2016-17, who are currently staying in 33 camps in Ukhia and Teknaf in Cox's Bazar and Bhasan Char. In addition, a significant portion of the 265,000 refugees who entered during 1991-92 are still staying in the camps. With an average of 35,000 new births each year, the current number of Rohingya is said to be over 1.3 million.
Refugees lead an inhuman life. I have closely observed the plight of refugees through my work experience in humanitarian activities for the Rohingya in Bangladesh (1992-93 and 2022-22) and in the Afghan refugee camp in Quetta, Pakistan (2001-2002). In particular, the bleak and uncertain future of children and adolescents who are deprived of formal education and psychosocial rights has left many like me alone. In addition, due to the increasing funding crisis due to wars, internal conflicts and disaster situations worldwide, meeting the nutritional needs of refugees of all ages, including children, is recognized as a real challenge. UNHCR says that the number of displaced people has doubled in the past decade. However, the organization's humanitarian funding remains the same as in 2015. As a result, ongoing spending cuts are putting refugees and displaced people at even greater risk.
On the eve of Refugee Day, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said, "We are living in a time of great uncertainty in international relations, where modern warfare has created a fragile and tragic humanitarian crisis. We need to do more to find peaceful and sustainable solutions for refugees and displaced people."Even Grandi's call has not been reached out, the Iran-Israel war broke out. The Israeli prime minister and the US president have already asked the people of Tehran to leave the capital. Iran has also asked the civilians of Tel Aviv and Haifa to move to safer places. So, if this war is prolonged and devastating, where can we estimate the number of refugees? For information, the populations of Tehran, Tel Aviv and Haifa are 10 million, 4.6 million and 300,000 respectively.
Although all sides in the world believe in this eternal truth that war does not bring any solution, there is no end to efforts to keep the war alive. Because, the longer the war is prolonged, the more the arms trade will flourish. Along with this, the race of weapons manufacturers will continue in the name of discussion and dialogue. Therefore, just as the world war is not stopping, the refugee problem also remains behind the solution. UNHCR says that the number of refugees has been increasing every year in the last decade, the main reason being the long-term wars and conflicts in different countries and the global failure to stop them. That is why we have been hearing the sad story of Afghan refugees since the nineties of the last century. The issue of refugees in Africa has been going on even before that. And in this century, the crowd of refugees is increasing in the peaceful Middle East. The guardians of all states, the United Nations or regional alliances (EU, Arab League, African Union, ASEAN, etc.), seem to be fulfilling their responsibilities only by passing resolutions and making statements. Therefore, what is needed now is real geopolitical goodwill, effective dialogue, and a strong commitment to complying with international law or conventions. Only then it will be possible to solve the global refugee problem and ensure their rights and dignity, which is the significance of World Refugee Day.
The writer is a former Director, Bangladesh Red Crescent Society; Disaster, climate and humanitarian analyst