Afghanistan: Refugees and displaced people in 2021

In August 2021, the Taliban captured Kabul as Coalition troops withdrew from Afghanistan. It announced the formation of a government in early September. Remaining opposition forces have fled to neighbouring Tajikistan.

Afghanistan is one of the world’s least developed countries, according to UN measurements. The county now faces multiple economic, financial, and humanitarian challenges, which may worsen due to reductions in foreign aid, international trade, and the nature of Taliban governance.

Analysis published for the International Crisis Group and the World Economic Forum have warned that these crises may result in a growing numbers of Afghan refugees, impacting particularly on Iran, Pakistan and Turkey.

In August, the UN Refugee Agency warned that the “most likely scenario” for 2021 was that there would be an additional 500,000 internally displaced people within Afghanistan(opens pdf), but the “worst case” was that there would be an additional 515,000 refugees in neighbouring counties. Providing an update in December, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, warned that an economic collapse in Afghanistan may lead to an “implosion that will cause an inflow of people” both within and beyond Afghanistan’s borders.

This briefing looks at the situation facing civilians, refugees, and internally displaced people in Afghanistan, their access to border crossings, their treatment in neighbouring states, and briefly sets out the schemes in place for Afghan refugees, including the UK’s.

Foreign aid commitments to Afghanistan are described in the separate Library briefing, Aid to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.