Forcibly displaced people in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Forcibly displaced people was 5,284 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Forcibly displaced people in Sri Lanka, 2010–2025
Source: Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 5,284 for forcibly displaced people in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 16 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.3% on the previous year and down 88.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forcibly displaced people in Sri Lanka peaked at 327,358 in 2010 and was at its lowest, 5,284, in 2025.
That places Sri Lanka 134th 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.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 92,926 | 27,402 | 327,358 | 10 |
| 2020s | 12,201 | 5,284 | 27,232 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More social development data for Sri Lanka
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 213 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 148,369 (2025)
- Physical Integrity Rights Score 0.4203 (2019)
- Asylum-seekers by country or territory of origin 33,564 (2025)
- Asylum-seekers by country or territory of asylum 271 (2025)
- Press freedom 0 (2016)
- Self-reported life satisfaction 4.01 (2025)
- Internally displaced people (IDP) by country or territory of asylum / 4,800 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forcibly displaced people in Sri Lanka?
- Forcibly displaced people in Sri Lanka was 5,284 in 2025, according to Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
- What is the highest forcibly displaced people recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 327,358 in 2010.
- What is the lowest forcibly displaced people recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 5,284 in 2025.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for forcibly displaced people?
- Sri Lanka ranks 134th out of 180 countries with data for 2025.
- Is forcibly displaced people rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 88.4%. 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 Forcibly displaced people. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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.