Internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)

West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions): Internally displaced persons was 13.58 million in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
13.58 million
Change on year
down 20.4%
Rank
50th
of 148 groups
All-time high
17.06 million
in 2024
All-time low
2.26 million
in 2011
Years of data
17
2009–2025

Internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions), 2009–2025

05.0M10.0M15.0M2009201720252009: 2.6M2010: 2.7M2011: 2.3M2012: 3.3M2013: 7.7M2014: 4.8M2015: 4.8M2016: 5.4M2017: 7.9M2018: 7.5M2019: 12.0M2020: 12.6M2021: 13.6M2022: 15.6M2023: 15.3M2024: 17.1M2025: 13.6M

Source: UNICEF.

Analysis

In 2025, internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) stood at 13.58 million.

That represents a change of down 20.4% on the previous year and up 181.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) peaked at 17.06 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 2.26 million, in 2011.

That places West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) 50th out of 148 groups 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.

Internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions), year by year

Annual values for Internally displaced persons (IDPs) in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions), 2009 to 2025.
Year Value Change
2009 2.65 million
2010 2.66 million +0.5%
2011 2.26 million -14.9%
2012 3.31 million +46.0%
2013 7.66 million +131.8%
2014 4.82 million -37.1%
2015 4.82 million -0.0%
2016 5.41 million +12.2%
2017 7.89 million +45.8%
2018 7.49 million -5.1%
2019 11.97 million +59.8%
2020 12.62 million +5.5%
2021 13.61 million +7.8%
2022 15.55 million +14.3%
2023 15.32 million -1.5%
2024 17.06 million +11.4%
2025 13.58 million -20.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 2.65 million 2.65 million 2.65 million 1
2010s 5.83 million 2.26 million 11.97 million 10
2020s 14.62 million 12.62 million 17.06 million 6

Countries ranked near West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)

  1. 47 Madagascar 70,105 compare
  2. 48 Lebanon 64,417 compare
  3. 49 El Salvador 60,546 compare
  4. 50 Japan 44,474 compare
  5. 51 United States of America 44,311 compare
  6. 52 Israel 31,382 compare
  7. 53 South Africa 27,654 compare

See the full ranking of 252 places →

More population data for West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)

All data for West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) →

Frequently asked questions

What is internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)?
Internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) was 13.58 million in 2025, according to UNICEF.
What is the highest internally displaced persons recorded in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)?
The highest recorded value was 17.06 million in 2024.
What is the lowest internally displaced persons recorded in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)?
The lowest recorded value was 2.26 million in 2011.
How does West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) rank for internally displaced persons?
West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) ranks 50th out of 148 groups with data for 2025.
Is internally displaced persons rising or falling in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)?
Over the last ten years it is up 181.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions) data come from?
The figures come from UNICEF, published as part of Internally displaced persons (IDPs). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions). Statizoid, drawing on UNICEF. Retrieved 24 August 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/internally-displaced-persons-idps/west-and-central-africa-unicef-prog-regions/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://population.statizoid.com/stat/internally-displaced-persons-idps/west-and-central-africa-unicef-prog-regions/">Internally displaced persons in West and Central Africa (UNICEF Prog.regions)</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Internally displaced persons (IDPs)
Source
UNICEF
Licence
UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
252 places, 3,487 data points, 2009–2025
Last refreshed