In 2024, Turkey was the country that hosted the highest amount of Syrian refugees, amounting up to 3.1 million refugees. Lebanon was second, hosting 775,000 Syrian refugees. The data refers to the total number of Syrian refugees in a given country, not considering the date of their application for asylum or the date of their flight.

Abstract

The Syrian crisis has caused one of the largest episodes of forced displacement since World War II and some of the densest refugee-hosting situations in modern history. Syria's immediate neighbors host the bulk of Syrian refugees. The host countries were dealing with impact of inflow of refugees as well as consequences of the Syrian conflict such as disruption on trade and economic activity and growth and spread of the Islamic State. This survey was designed to generate comparable findings on the lives and livelihoods of Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan, Lebanon and Kurdistan, Iraq.

The goals of the survey originally were: - to assess the socio-economic and living conditions of a representative sample of the Syrian refugee and host community population. - to understand the implications in terms of social and economic conditions on the host communities. - to identify strategies to support Syrian refugees and host communities in the immediate and longer term.

Geographic coverage

Syrian refugee and host community in Jordan

Analysis unit

Refugee household and individual

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

Jordan has carried out Population and Housing Censuses on regular intervals, with the last one in late 2015. What was particularly attractive about the latest census from the perspective of sampling was that it explicitly asked about the nationality of all residents. This would have allowed stratification of areas by density of Syrians. However, the original design could not be implemented because we could not access the new sample frame based on the 2015 Jordanian census. The design was then amended to include a representative sample of the Azraq and Za'atari camps (which account for the vast majority of Syrian refugees in camps in Jordan). This sample was complemented by purposive samples of the surrounding governorates, Mafraq and Zarqa, where the sample included areas physically proximate to the camp and other areas with a high number of Syrian refugees. In Amman Governorate, a purposive sample was drawn, combining a geographically distributed sample with a sample of areas with a high prevalence of Syrian refugees per the 2015 census, as indicated by the Jordanian Department of Statistics. Analytically, this implies the insights from Jordan will be limited to camp residents, neighboring areas of the camps, and Amman governorate. For this reason, Amman is left out of the rest of the discussion, where our focus is on relating the innovative approaches that we followed to obtain near-representative sample in absence of recent sampling frame.

Note: A more detailed description of the sample design is presented in Section 2 of "Survey Design and Sampling: A methodology note for the 2015-16 surveys of Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan, Lebanon and Kurdistan, Iraq" document.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument

The survey instrument was administered across Lebanon, Jordan, and KRI, with slight modifications depending on the structure of refugee living conditions. The survey includes detailed questions on demographics, employment, access to public services, health, migration, and perceptions.

Syria SY: Refugee Population: by Country or Territory of Asylum data was reported at 569,774.000 Person in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 562,823.000 Person for 2016. Syria SY: Refugee Population: by Country or Territory of Asylum data is updated yearly, averaging 427,424.500 Person from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2017, with 28 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,955,236.000 Person in 2007 and a record low of 284,856.000 Person in 1990. Syria SY: Refugee Population: by Country or Territory of Asylum data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Syrian Arab Republic – Table SY.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Refugees are people who are recognized as refugees under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 Protocol, the 1969 Organization of African Unity Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, people recognized as refugees in accordance with the UNHCR statute, people granted refugee-like humanitarian status, and people provided temporary protection. Asylum seekers--people who have applied for asylum or refugee status and who have not yet received a decision or who are registered as asylum seekers--are excluded. Palestinian refugees are people (and their descendants) whose residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948 and who lost their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict. Country of asylum is the country where an asylum claim was filed and granted.; ; United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Statistics Database, Statistical Yearbook and data files, complemented by statistics on Palestinian refugees under the mandate of the UNRWA as published on its website. Data from UNHCR are available online at: www.unhcr.org/en-us/figures-at-a-glance.html.; Sum;

In the fiscal year of 2024, 11,274 refugees from Syria had been admitted into the United States. This was a slight increase from the previous fiscal year, when 10,781 Syrian refugees were admitted to the U.S.

Family composition of Syrian refugees who arrived in Canada as part of the Government of Canada's commitment to resettle Syrian refugees. Please note that in these datasets, the figures have been suppressed or rounded to prevent the identification of individuals when the datasets are compiled and compared with other publicly available statistics. Values between 0 and 5 are shown as “--“ and all other values are rounded to the nearest multiple of 5. This may result to the sum of the figures not equating to the totals indicated. Please note that the datasets will not be updated.

Syrian refugees who have arrived in Canada as part of the Government of Canada's commitment to resettle Syrian refugees. Datasets include Syrian refugees who have received settlement services. Please note that in these datasets, the figures have been suppressed or rounded to prevent the identification of individuals when the datasets are compiled and compared with other publicly available statistics. Values between 0 and 5 are shown as “--“ and all other values are rounded to the nearest multiple of 5. This may result to the sum of the figures not equating to the totals indicated.

Abstract

The Syrian crisis has caused one of the largest episodes of forced displacement since World War II and some of the densest refugee-hosting situations in modern history. Syria's immediate neighbors host the bulk of Syrian refugees. The host countries were dealing with impact of inflow of refugees as well as consequences of the Syrian conflict such as disruption on trade and economic activity and growth and spread of the Islamic State. This survey was designed to generate comparable findings on the lives and livelihoods of Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan, Lebanon and Kurdistan, Iraq.

The goals of the survey originally were: - to assess the socio-economic and living conditions of a representative sample of the Syrian refugee and host community population. - to understand the implications in terms of social and economic conditions on the host communities. - to identify strategies to support Syrian refugees and host communities in the immediate and longer term.

Geographic coverage

Syrian refugee and host community in Kurdistan, Iraq

Analysis unit

Refugee household and individual

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

Conducting a representative survey in Lebanon was especially challenging. The first difficulty was that, as of 2015, there was no recent or reliable sample frame, even for Lebanese households, as the last official population census was conducted in 1932. Typically, such a sample frame consists of the universe of enumeration areas in a country, with associated estimates of population. This meant that we had to construct our own sample frame by selecting a few Small Area Units (SAUs) and then conducting a full listing operation by visiting every household within the selected SAUs and collecting basic demographic and contact information. The second difficulty was that there was no available cartographic division of the country into geographic areas small enough to be the subject of a full listing operation, which could then serve as a sampling frame for the SAUs. Circonscription Foncières (CF) were the finest level of disaggregation available; CFs are generally too large to be listed as some have populations of over 100,000. Finally, there was no available sampling frame for Syrian refugees in Lebanon, which meant that we had to depend on UNHCR data on registered Syrian refugees, combined with the estimates of Lebanese population at the CF level. Given these challenges and time and budgetary constraints, the sample was selected in multiple (four) stages.

Note: A more detailed description of the sample design is presented in Section 2 of "Survey Design and Sampling: A methodology note for the 2015-16 surveys of Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan, Lebanon and Kurdistan, Iraq" document.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

The total number of Syrians registered under temporary protection status in Turkey totaled roughly 3.1 million on August 29, 2024. Syrian refugees aged between five and nine years old made up the largest age group, amounting to nearly 529,000 individuals.

Syria SY: Refugee Population: by Country or Territory of Origin data was reported at 6,308,619.000 Person in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 5,524,377.000 Person for 2016. Syria SY: Refugee Population: by Country or Territory of Origin data is updated yearly, averaging 14,450.500 Person from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2017, with 28 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6,308,619.000 Person in 2017 and a record low of 2,148.000 Person in 1990. Syria SY: Refugee Population: by Country or Territory of Origin data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Syrian Arab Republic – Table SY.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Refugees are people who are recognized as refugees under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 Protocol, the 1969 Organization of African Unity Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, people recognized as refugees in accordance with the UNHCR statute, people granted refugee-like humanitarian status, and people provided temporary protection. Asylum seekers--people who have applied for asylum or refugee status and who have not yet received a decision or who are registered as asylum seekers--are excluded. Palestinian refugees are people (and their descendants) whose residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948 and who lost their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict. Country of origin generally refers to the nationality or country of citizenship of a claimant.; ; United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Statistics Database, Statistical Yearbook and data files, complemented by statistics on Palestinian refugees under the mandate of the UNRWA as published on its website. Data from UNHCR are available online at: www.unhcr.org/en-us/figures-at-a-glance.html.; Sum;

This statistic shows the number of Syrian refugees that have arrived in the United States from 2011 to 2019, by gender. In 2019, 341 male refugees from Syria had been admitted into the United States during the calendar year.

As of mid-2024, Syria had the highest number of refugees who had fled the country. That year, about 6.25 million refugees had left the country, mainly due to the civil war that started in 2011. Second on the list is Ukraine after over six million people left the country since Russia's invasion in February 2022. The third highest number of refugees in the world came from Afghanistan after years of civil wars, instability, and Taliban regaining power in 2021. What are refugees? Refugees are people who have been forced to leave their country because of dangerous circumstances, such as war, violence, famine, or persecution. These circumstances arise from race, religious, ethnic, and/or political persecution, and refugees are unable to return to their home countries due to these conflicts. As of 2022, Turkey hosted the largest number of Syrian refugees. Refugees worldwide The number of refugees, internally displaced people, and asylum seekers worldwide has significantly increased since 2012, much due to the civil wars in Syria and Libya that started in 2011, but also due to increasing instability in the Sahel, the Sudan civil war, the Israel-Hamas war, and the Russia-Ukraine war. An internally displaced person is someone who is forced to leave their home but still stays in their country. They are not legally considered a refugee. Asylum seekers are people who leave their home country and enter another country to apply for asylum, which is internationally recognized protection.

This statistic shows the number of Syrian refugees that have arrived in the United States between 2011 and June 30, 2020, by age. As of June 30, 2020, 10,141 Syrian refugees in the United States were under the age of 14, representing nearly half of all Syrian refugees.

Historical chart and dataset showing Syrian Arab Republic refugee statistics by year from 1960 to 2023.

Abstract

Eleven years into the Syrian conflict, Lebanon ranks the highest in per capita population of refugees in the world, with over 1.5 million displaced Syrians within its borders. Specifically, the Syrian refugee population in Lebanon remains one of the largest concentrations of refugees per capita in the world. A series of overlapping political, economic and social crises in Lebanon has underpinned the vastly growing level of need across populations in the country. On the macroeconomic front, at the beginning of July 2022 the World Bank downgraded Lebanon to a lower-middle-income country for the first time in 27 years, after Lebanon’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) had decreased from $55 billion in 2018 to $20.5 billion in 2021.1 The Lebanese lira has continued to lose value in 2022, reaching exchange rates close to LBP 43,000 to the United States dollar in the informal market in December 2022. The country depends heavily on imports, paid for in dollars; fluctuations in exchange rates thus have significant impacts on the prices of goods and services in the country. Inflation is still on the rise: between October 2019 and the time of data collection in June 2022 the Consumer Price Index, which measures the average change of prices over time, rose by 1,066 per cent. In addition to these factors, the COVID-19 and more recent Cholera outbreaks have stretched the country’s health sector and resources to breaking point. As a result, Lebanon’s financial and humanitarian situation ranks among the most severe crises in the world today.

The 2022 Vulnerability Assessment of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon (VASyR) is the tenth annual representative survey assessing the situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, with the aim to identify changes and trends in their vulnerabilities. Since its first round of data collection and assessment, the VASyR has become an essential tool for planning, shaping decision-making and the design of needs-based programmes. The results of the VASyR are used by the 10 sectors in partnership under the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP), in order to understand the situational changes in Lebanon and advocate for funding. The VASyR has also been used to build targeting models, for instance to predict socioeconomic vulnerability and allocate assistance accordingly. Furthermore, the results of the VASyR reveal the geographical differences in vulnerabilities at governorate and district levels, which then feed into the situation analysis.

Analysis unit

Household

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

Sampling for the VASyR follows a two-stage cluster approach, keeping with the methodology of previous years. UNHCR database of known Syrian refugees as of 2022 served as the sample frame. Cases with missing addresses were excluded. Sampling was based on a 30 x 7 two-stage cluster scheme initially developed by the World Health Organization. This method outlines a sample size of 30 clusters per geographical area and seven households per cluster which provides a precision of +/- 10 percentage points. Districts were considered as the geographical level within which 30 clusters were selected. There are 26 districts in Lebanon, where Beirut and Akkar each represent a district and a governorate. As such, to ensure similar representativeness with other governorates, an additional two cluster samples were considered for each, yielding 90 cluster selections for each. The governorate of Baalbek Hermel is made up of only two districts, as such, and to ensure an adequate sample in that governorate, one additional cluster sample was considered.

The primary sampling unit was defined as the village level (i.e. cluster) and UNHCR cases served as the secondary sampling unit. A case was defined as a group of people who are identified together as one unit (usually immediate family/household) under UNHCR databases. Using Emergency Nutrition Assesment (ENA) software, villages were selected using probability proportionate to size where villages with a larger concentration of refugees was more likely to be selected and 30 clusters/villages were selected with four replacement clusters, per district.

In order to estimate the sample size needed to generate results that are representative on a district, governorate and national level, the following assumptions were used: - 50% estimated prevalence - 10% precision - 1.5 design effect - 5% margin of error

Using the above parameters, 165 cases per district/cluster selection was required, leading to a target of 5,000 cases nationally. Due to the known high level of mobility of the Syrian refugee population and based on experience in previous rounds of VASyR and other household level surveys, a 40% non-response rate was considered.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument

The 2021 VASyR questionnaire collected data at the household level and individual level including demographics, legal documentation, safety and security, shelter, WASH, health, food security, livelihoods, expenditures, food consumption, debt, coping strategies and assistance, as well as questions specifically relating to women, children and people with disabilities.

The data set includes the GIS coordination and population information of 18 potential service points (2 hospitals, 1 Red Crescent office, and 15 schools) together with 187 (109 villages and 78 neighbourhoods) main locations where Syrian refugees inhabit in the Kilis province in southern Turkey. Locations are classified as Villages (Köy) and Neighbourhoods (Mahalle) based on administrative divisions of Turkey. The population of each identified demand location, which is obtained from the local government in 2018, is provided as well.

The dataset has been used for a study on how to design a network of administrative facilities to support the roll-out of cash-based interventions, using refugee locations from the dataset to identify appropriate locations for these administrative facilities using the model presented in the paper. For decades the humanitarian sector has mainly relied on providing material assistance to beneficiaries during disaster relief. These days there is a growing importance in the provision of services, not only by means of replacing the distribution of relief items by cash & vouchers that can be exchanged for goods as needed but also in the provision of supporting services such as health or education. These services can help stimulate local market activity and restart livelihoods.

In this project we aim to design and implement the supply chain for two key services to beneficiaries: cash & voucher distribution (as a replacement for distributing core relief items).

The dataset has been used for a study on how to design a network of administrative facilities to support the roll-out of cash-based interventions, using refugee locations from the dataset to identify appropriate locations for these administrative facilities using the model presented in the paper.

Data as of June 11, 2015. The "Syria Refugee Sites" dataset contains verified data about the geographic location (point geometry), name, and operational status of refugee sites hosting Syrian refugees in Turkey, Jordan, and Iraq. Only refugee sites operated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) or the Government of Turkey are included. Compiled by the U.S Department of State, Humanitarian Information Unit (INR/GGI/HIU), each attribute in the dataset (including name, location, and status) is verified against multiple sources. The name and status are obtained from the UNHCR data portal (accessible at http://data.unhcr.org/syrianrefugees/regional.php). The locations are obtained from the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency's GEOnet Names Server (GNS) (accessible at http://geonames.nga.mil/ggmagaz/). The name and status for each refugee site is verified with PRM. Locations are verified using high-resolution commercial satellite imagery and/or known areas of population. Additionally, all data is checked against various news sources. Locations are only accurate down to the city level. The designation field gives the type of site and the status of the site. Sites can be "Official Camps", camp settlements that are officially established and maintained by the United Nations or host country. Sites can also be "Transitional Camps", which is a typical camp structure but designed to be temporary or used on as needed basis. There can also be "Transitional Facilities"; these are facilities that are being used to temporarily house refugees. Status of these sites can be Planned, Under Construction, Staged, Open, or Closed. The data contained herein is entirely unclassified and is current as of 11 June 2015. The data is updated as needed.

Data as of June 11, 2015. The "Syria Refugee Sites" dataset contains verified data about the geographic location (point geometry), name, and operational status of refugee sites hosting Syrian refugees in Turkey, Jordan, and Iraq. Only refugee sites operated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) or the Government of Turkey are included. Compiled by the U.S Department of State, Humanitarian Information Unit (INR/GGI/HIU), each attribute in the dataset (including name, location, and status) is verified against multiple sources. The name and status are obtained from the UNHCR data portal (accessible at http://data.unhcr.org/syrianrefugees/regional.php). The locations are obtained from the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency's GEOnet Names Server (GNS) (accessible at http://geonames.nga.mil/ggmagaz/). The name and status for each refugee site is verified with PRM. Locations are verified using high-resolution commercial satellite imagery and/or known areas of population. Additionally, all data is checked against various news sources. Locations are only accurate down to the city level. The designation field gives the type of site and the status of the site. Sites can be "Official Camps", camp settlements that are officially established and maintained by the United Nations or host country. Sites can also be "Transitional Camps", which is a typical camp structure but designed to be temporary or used on as needed basis. There can also be "Transitional Facilities"; these are facilities that are being used to temporarily house refugees. Status of these sites can be Planned, Under Construction, Staged, Open, or Closed. The data contained herein is entirely unclassified and is current as of 11 June 2015. The data is updated as needed.

Abstract

The Jordan High Frequency Survey is designed to monitor the wellbeing of Jordanians and Syrian refugees living in Jordan through the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey consists of four rounds of data collected between March 2021 and June 2022 on representative samples of Jordanian and registered Syrian refugees living in the country. Both groups (Jordanians and refugees) were interviewed three times over this period. The survey was collected over the phone as the primary mode of interview, but some interviews were also randomly allocated to be conducted face-to-face.

Geographic coverage

National

Analysis unit

• Household
• Individual

Universe

Jordanians and registered Syrian refugees living in Jordan.

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

The sampling frame for Jordanians are the bread subsidy applicant cases in the National Unified Registry (NUR), restricted to households with at least one phone number. This sample is stratified by region, location (rural/urban), and a proxy for income quintile (as reported in the NUR), aiming to provide point estimates of key indicators with sufficient precision at the national level and at the levels of the Central (Amman, Zarqa, Balqa, and Madaba), North (Irbid, Jarash, Ajloun, and Mafraq), and South (Karak, Tafiela, Ma’an, and Aqaba) regions. For the Jordanian group, in addition to the main national sample, three additional sub-samples were drawn: i) Takaful beneficiaries ii) Informal workers and iii)Takaful control.

The sampling frame for the refugee sample is the UNHCR database of Syrian refugees in Jordan trimmed to cases whose Asylum Seeker Certificate was issued as of 1 September 2018 onwards. This sample is stratified by governorate and camp/non-camp location in three bins: Amman (non-camp), other governorates (non-camp), camps.

The survey respondent was the head of household or an adult household member, and an attempt was made to ensure some gender balance on the respondent.

Mode of data collection

Computer Assisted Telephone Interview [cati]

Research instrument

The Jordan HFS households questionnaire consists of the following sections:

ROUND 1 - Household identification - Household roster - Public health - Access - Livelihood - Social protection and network - Food consumption score - Negative coping strategy - Food consumption, staples - Non-food purchases - Durables

ROUND 2 - Household identification - Household roster - Public health - Access - Livelihood - Social protection and network - Food consumption score - Negative coping strategy

ROUND 3 - Household identification - Household roster - Public health - Access - Livelihood - Social protection and network - Food consumption score - Food consumption (Syrian Refugees) - Non-food purchases (Syrian Refugees) - Durables (Syrian Refugees) - Negative coping strategy

ROUND 4 - Household identification - Household roster - Public health - Access - Early childhood development - Livelihood - Social protection and network - Food consumption score - Negative coping strategy

Response rate

An attempt was also made to track households over time. Households who could not be interviewed again were replaced randomly from the respective sample frame. Retention rates were averaged 73 percent from one round to another for the Jordanian sample and 89 percent for the refugee sample.

VASyR is the Vulnerability Assessment of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon aimed at gaining knowledge of their living conditions and informing decision-making on programmatic activities. It is a joint UNHCR, UNICEF and WFP multi-sectorial household survey conducted with the registered and awaiting-registration Syrian refugee population in Lebanon.

Abstract

The Vulnerability Assessment for Syrian Refugees in Lebanon Arsaal, was conducted jointly by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP, dataviz.vam.wfp.org). Now in its seventh year, the Vulnerability Assessment of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon (VASyR) assesses a representative sample of Syrian refugee families to identify changes and trends in their situation. The Government of Lebanon estimates that the country hosts 1.5 million of the 6.7 million Syrians who have fled the conflict since 2011 (including nearly one million registered with UNHCR as of end of September 2019). VASyR Arsaal is an addition to the 2019 VASyR, containing a representative sample of Syrian Refugee households in Arsaal.

Geographic coverage

Arsaal

Analysis unit

Household and individual

Universe

The sampling frame used for VASyR 2019 was the total number of Syrian refugees in Arsaal known to UNHCR.

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

The sample includes 328 Syrian refugee households, and aims to be representative of the Syrian refugee families in Arsaal. A two-stage cluster approach was adpoted using the sampling frame of the total number of Syrian refugees known to UNHCR. Using the “30x7” two stage cluster scheme, originally developed by the World Health Organization, 30 clusters per geographical area and seven households per cluster are used to provide a precision of +/- 10 percentage points. Arsaal was selected due to its specific situation which differs from other refugee hosting communities.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument

The questionnaire included key information on household demographics, arrival profile, registration, protection, shelter, WASH, assets, health, education, security, livelihoods, expenditures, food consumption, coping strategies, debts and assistance, as well as infant and young feeding practices.

Cleaning operations

After the completion of data collection, raw data was shared with the VASyR Core Group to review inconsistencies and mistakes that could not be identified during the collection phase. Some of these errors required calling households back to validate and correct the data collected. Each agency was asked to provide the team in charge of clean-up with a list of identified issues and recommendations on how to proceed with the clean-up. A copy of the original raw data was saved. Any modification to the data was scripted in SQL providing a step by step audit trail from the raw data leading to the final dataset used for analysis