Forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Forcibly displaced people was 80,848 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea, 2010–2025
Source: Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Analysis
In 2025, forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea stood at 80,848.
That represents a change of down 14.9% on the previous year and up 397.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea peaked at 97,821 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 9,378, in 2011.
That places Papua New Guinea 85th out of 180 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 9,699 | — |
| 2011 | 9,378 | -3.3% |
| 2012 | 9,534 | +1.7% |
| 2013 | 9,777 | +2.5% |
| 2014 | 17,401 | +78.0% |
| 2015 | 16,251 | -6.6% |
| 2016 | 17,945 | +10.4% |
| 2017 | 22,018 | +22.7% |
| 2018 | 22,173 | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 23,830 | +7.5% |
| 2020 | 23,889 | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 11,964 | -49.9% |
| 2022 | 96,827 | +709.3% |
| 2023 | 97,821 | +1.0% |
| 2024 | 94,983 | -2.9% |
| 2025 | 80,848 | -14.9% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 80,848 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 56,328, 1.4× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 80,848 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 6,732, 12.0× the median. (21 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | +709.3% | 11,964 | 96,827 |
| 2014 | +78.0% | 9,777 | 17,401 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 15,801 | 9,378 | 23,830 | 10 |
| 2020s | 67,722 | 11,964 | 97,821 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More social development data for Papua New Guinea
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 7,727 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 644 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 644 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0007 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea?
- Forcibly displaced people in Papua New Guinea was 80,848 in 2025, according to Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
- What is the highest forcibly displaced people recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 97,821 in 2023.
- What is the lowest forcibly displaced people recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 9,378 in 2011.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for forcibly displaced people?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 85th out of 180 countries with data for 2025.
- Is forcibly displaced people rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 397.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), published as part of Forcibly displaced people. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 16 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Forcibly displaced people are represented by the sum of (1) refugees (and people in a refugee-like situation) under the mandate of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), (2) refugees under the mandate of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), (3) asylum-seekers, (4) other people in need of international protection, and (5) internally displaced people (IDPs). Situations in which people are reported in more than one of these categories are accounted for, to the extent possible.