Ethiopia vs Rwanda: Refugees by country of origin
Ethiopia
164,418 people
in 2024
Rwanda
249,087 people
in 2024
Ethiopia rank
18th
Rwanda rank
16th
Refugees by country of origin over time
- Ethiopia
- Rwanda
How they compare
Rwanda currently reports 249,087 people against 164,418 people in Ethiopia, a difference of 84,669 people.
That makes Rwanda's figure about 1.5 times Ethiopia's.
The two have swapped places 6 times across 58 shared years of data; in 1967 it was Rwanda ahead.
Ethiopia ranks 18th and Rwanda ranks 16th of 204 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, Ethiopia averaged higher in 2 and Rwanda in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Ethiopia | Rwanda | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 30,200 people | 155,087 people | 124,887 people | Rwanda |
| 1970s | 361,369 people | 165,274 people | 196,094 people | Ethiopia |
| 1980s | 1.59 million people | 331,939 people | 1.26 million people | Ethiopia |
| 1990s | 281,190 people | 645,849 people | 364,659 people | Rwanda |
| 2000s | 63,848 people | 89,366 people | 25,518 people | Rwanda |
| 2010s | 82,131 people | 180,833 people | 98,702 people | Rwanda |
| 2020s | 154,584 people | 248,555 people | 93,971 people | Rwanda |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher refugees by country of origin, Ethiopia or Rwanda?
- Rwanda, at 249,087 people against 164,418 people in Ethiopia as of 2024.
- What is the difference in refugees by country of origin between Ethiopia and Rwanda?
- 84,669 people, with Rwanda ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Ethiopia and Rwanda?
- 58 years are reported by both, from 1967 to 2024.
- How do Ethiopia and Rwanda rank globally for refugees by country of origin?
- Ethiopia ranks 18th and Rwanda ranks 16th of 204 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- UNHCR (2025) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Refugees by country of origin. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
People who fled their country of origin and are in need of international protection. Refugees are those who have already been granted asylum status in the country they moved to. This includes all refugees, not just those who fled that year.