Internally displaced people (IDP) by country or territory of asylum / in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Internally displaced people (IDP) by country or territory of asylum / was 4,800 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Internally displaced people (IDP) by country or territory of asylum / in Sri Lanka, 2009–2025
Source: Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Analysis
In 2025, internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum / in Sri Lanka stood at 4,800. That is the lowest value across all 17 years on record.
That represents a change of down 89.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum / in Sri Lanka peaked at 400,000 in 2009 and was at its lowest, 4,800, in 2024.
That places Sri Lanka 53rd out of 62 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Internally displaced people (IDP) by country or territory of asylum / in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 400,000 | — |
| 2010 | 327,000 | -18.2% |
| 2011 | 125,000 | -61.8% |
| 2012 | 93,000 | -25.6% |
| 2013 | 90,000 | -3.2% |
| 2014 | 90,000 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 44,000 | -51.1% |
| 2016 | 44,000 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 42,000 | -4.5% |
| 2018 | 37,000 | -11.9% |
| 2019 | 26,000 | -29.7% |
| 2020 | 26,000 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 11,000 | -57.7% |
| 2022 | 11,000 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 11,000 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 4,800 | -56.4% |
| 2025 | 4,800 | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 400,000 | 400,000 | 400,000 | 1 |
| 2010s | 91,800 | 26,000 | 327,000 | 10 |
| 2020s | 11,433 | 4,800 | 26,000 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
- 50 Armenia 7,600 compare
- 51 Burundi 6,800 compare
- 52 Senegal 5,900 compare
- 54 Kyrgyzstan 4,000 compare
- 54 Turkmenistan 4,000 compare
- 56 Uzbekistan 3,400 compare
More social development data for Sri Lanka
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 213 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 148,369 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 3 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 3 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0068 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 148,369 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 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 internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum / in Sri Lanka?
- Internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum / in Sri Lanka was 4,800 in 2025, according to Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
- What is the highest internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum / recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 400,000 in 2009.
- What is the lowest internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum / recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 4,800 in 2024.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum /?
- Sri Lanka ranks 53rd out of 62 countries with data for 2025.
- Is internally displaced people (idp) by country or territory of asylum / rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 89.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), published as part of Internally displaced people (IDP) by country or territory of asylum / origin. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Internally displaced people (IDPs) are persons or groups of persons who have been forced or obliged to flee or to leave their homes or places of habitual residence, in particular as a result of, or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, and violations of human rights, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized State border.