While the data may suggest stability, the grinding reality of refugees tells a different story. Funding for humanitarian aid has been slashed just as global needs are soaring. Refugees now face a double crisis: the trauma of exile and the collapse of the support systems they rely on.

In 2015, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, received US$3.4 billion in funding at a time when 64 million people were displaced. A decade later in the face of nearly double the needs, our budget remained at roughly the same level following a substantial decline in humanitarian funding.

The main drivers of displacement remain large conflicts like Sudan, now the largest displacement crisis in the world with over a third of its population displaced, Myanmar and Ukraine, and the continued failure to stop the fighting.

In each case, displacement was a choice between survival and peril. Many have fled protracted and brutal conflicts, and nearly seven in 10 of all refugees under UNHCR’s mandate come from just five countries: Venezuela, Syria, Afghanistan, Ukraine and South Sudan.

The crisis evolving in the Middle East will once again create serious population displacement and suffering if a political solution is not found, and breaking a new displacement record is something we don’t want to see. There were 122.1 million forcibly displaced people by the end of April, up slightly from the same time a year earlier.

To put these numbers in perspective: One in every 67 people on the planet is displaced, a staggering total roughly equivalent to the population of Japan. This figure is no signal of victory, but a grim realization of the global worrying displacement trends at record-high levels.

Basic services like education, health care and food distribution are breaking down. Displaced communities are packed into overcrowded camps or dwellings, often in locations hardest hit by extreme weather. Women and girls face disproportionate risks in this worsening landscape. While structures to protect people wither, reports of sexual violence, exploitation and abuse continue to climb.

In this context, we continue to push for solutions, to double our efforts, and there are rays of hope amid human suffering. Hope for humanity needs to prevail. Last year saw the highest number of returns in decades. Nearly 9.8 million displaced people went back to their areas of origin in 2024, including 1.6 million refugees and over 8 million internally displaced people.

These are not small numbers, and they reflect, in part, the deep human desire to go back home. Refugees will go home if they could, as many will attest that there is no place like home. More than half a million Syrians have returned to their country following the fall of the Assad regime, hoping to rebuild their future despite returning to homes reduced to rubble and an environment which may not be conducive or sustainable.

Sadly, however, too many of these returns are premature, even coerced in some cases. Often, refugees are being forced to go back not because conditions are safe, but because the countries that once welcomed them are now hit by their own conflicts or are simply closing their doors. The promise of asylum and one of fundamental human rights is eroding, often under the pressures of domestic politics or socioeconomic trends.

Contrary to common narratives in the Global North, most displaced people never cross an international border or are unable to do so. Sixty percent remain within their own countries. Of those who do leave, the vast majority, 67 percent, flee only as far as the next country. That means low- and middle-income countries shoulder nearly three-quarters of the world’s refugee population.

Many of these countries have shown generosity for decades but are now sounding the alarm. The principle of shared responsibility is being neglected. Wealthier nations are not doing their part or not doing enough, often compelled by domestic pressure and national priorities.

So what can be done?

First, increase dwindling emergency lifesaving assistance. In the face of war, famine and disaster, the right to seek safety and lifesaving aid must not be subject to political whims. This is not charity; it is a moral and legal obligation. It is lifesaving.

Second, support refugees to go back home and help rebuild their communities. Return is a moment of hope, but it is also fragile. Without investment in housing, schools, health care and livelihoods, these returns risk becoming temporary and precarious, creating new vulnerabilities. Attention needs to focus on addressing the root causes of displacement.

Finally, invest in solutions. Yes, they are hard to achieve, but they are also the smart way forward. Durable solutions like resettlement, local integration and voluntary return are not just humanitarian goals. They are investments in regional and global stability. They reduce long-term aid dependence, foster security and restore dignity.

And they help avoid the desperate, dangerous journeys that so many are forced to undertake across the Mediterranean, jungles in Central America or on overcrowded boats in the Andaman Sea. In the region in 2024 alone, at least 660 Rohingya refugees died or went missing at sea, the highest toll since 2015.

Behind each statistic is the unique story of someone who once had a home, a job, a community, a dream, and lost it all through no fault of their own.

Displacement is one of the defining challenges of our time. But it is not inevitable. Peace, justice and solidarity must guide our response. This is a moment to show strengthened commitment, not to back down.

Each year on June 20, the world commemorates World Refugee Day. Let us do our part, as it is a moment to show solidarity with refugees, honoring their stories and showing unwavering support to their plight. Together for a solution. Together for humanity. Together in solidarity. We don’t have a choice.

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The writer is the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees representative to Indonesia.