The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

Number of refugees being resettled has plummeted during Covid-19 crisis, UN reveals

Border closures, flight cancellations and the pausing of resettlement programmes have all contributed to the drop during the pandemic

Syrian refugee Wafaa pins her three-year-old daughter Yasmine's hair at their home in Barja, Lebanon. The pandemic has put their resettlement plans to Norway on hold
Syrian refugee Wafaa pins her three-year-old daughter Yasmine’s hair at their home in Barja, Lebanon. The pandemic put their resettlement plans to Norway on hold CREDIT:  Diego Ibarra Sánchez/UNHCR

The world is set to hit a record low for resettling refugees this year, the UNHCR, the refugee branch of the United Nations, has warned.

Figures show only 15,425 refugees had been resettled by the end of September, compared to 63,726 for the whole of 2019. In 2016 the number was eight times higher, at 126,291.

The low numbers are down to the Covid-19 pandemic forcing border closures, resettlement pauses and flight cancellations.

Gillian Triggs, the UNHCR’s assistant high commissioner for protection, said: “We are dealing with a disappointingly low resettlement ceiling to begin with – a quota of less than 50,000 for the entire year – and this was further impacted by Covid-19 delaying departures and pausing some states’ resettlement programmes.”

The news is a blow for refugee protection and the ability to safeguard those at risk, Ms Triggs added.

As many as 15,000 resettlement places could be lost in 2020 as there are concerns states may not make up their shortfalls. The agency urged countries to restart their programmes.

Syrian refugee, Koneh Ali, 75
Syrian refugee, Koneh Ali, 75, lives in Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan, alone since her husband passed away. Some of her children are married and some remain in Syria, while others are resettled in Europe CREDIT:  Mohammad Hawari/UNHCR

Discussing the impact of the pandemic, Matthew Saltmarsh, a spokesman for the UNHCR, said: “The pandemic has presented new, acute hardships and uncertainties for refugees. Many of those with jobs – mostly in the casual sector – have lost them. Access to services in countries of asylum has become harder since the move by their support partners to shift to remote working.”

He added that the situation is especially worrying for refugees who are in limbo after already preparing to depart.

Some 280 refugees, who were previously evacuated to emergency transit facilities in Niger and Rwanda, are currently waiting to leave to resettlement countries. They are living in emergency accommodation and shelters, which, because of self-isolation requirements, have had to limit movement.

Others have remained in increasingly difficult situations in countries they have been settled in for some time. One family, who had fled to Lebanon in 2014 during Syria’s civil war, had been interviewed and accepted onto Norway’s resettlement scheme. They had initially intended to remain in Lebanon, but five years of poverty and steadily deteriorating circumstances meant their earnings – provided by their 13-year-old son – couldn’t cover the rent or electricity in the country.

Their flights to Norway, scheduled for March, were cancelled and they did not get another flight until October.

Ten-year-old Syrian refugee Layan plays with her three-year-old sister Yasmine Al Sham at their home in Barja, Lebanon. ; Wafaa Ahmad Hachem
Wafaa’s ten-year-old and three-year-old play at their home in Barja, Lebanon CREDIT:  Diego Ibarra Sánchez/UNHCR

Earlier this month, the Archbishop of York said the UK government should uphold Britain’s “proud tradition of offering sanctuary” by reopening refugee resettlement schemes which had been paused in March.

He said: “Since the First World War the United Kingdom’s refugee resettlement schemes have proved a vital lifeline to tens of thousands of people who have come to the UK escaping some of the world’s most brutal conflicts and regimes.”

The government later confirmed that resettlement flights would take off again soon, but failed to say when it will launch its new global resettlement programme, the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (VPRS), announced in June 2019.

Rossella Pagliuchi-Lor, the UNHCR’s UK representative, said: “The needs are huge and growing due to the pandemic. We urge the government to provide clarity and confirm when its new, global programme will start.”

The UNHCR praised countries that are continuing to safely manage resettlement travel. Once the lockdown was lifted in Lebanon, nine countries took 1,027 refugees between August and September. Italy, France and Spain are understood to be among those countries.

Somali refugees board a flight from Dadaab to be resettled in Sweden in October 2020
Somali refugees board a flight from Dadaab to be resettled in Sweden in October 2020 CREDIT:  Sebastian Rich/UNHCR

“Expanding safe and legal pathways to protection, including through resettlement, saves refugees’ lives and it can also mitigate their resort to dangerous journeys by land or sea,” Ms Triggs said.

Of the refugees that have been resettled this year, Syrians account for 41 per cent, followed by Congolese at 16 per cent. Most had legal and physical protection needs, were survivors of violence or torture, or were women and children at risk.

Source: Number of refugees being resettled has plummeted during Covid-19 crisis, UN reveals