16 June 2026
The Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA) is calling on the Federal Government to maintain its commitment to Australia’s Humanitarian Program, as new United Nations projections for 2027 show that 2.37 million refugees require urgent resettlement.
The projections, released today at the global Consultations on Resettlement and Complementary Pathways (CRCP), highlight a growing gap between the number of refugees in need of protection and the number of resettlement places available worldwide. In 2025, just 81,766 refugees were resettled, fewer than half the 188,759 refugees resettled a year earlier.
The two-day CRCP gathering in Geneva brings together government, NGO and refugee representatives from key resettlement states with officials from the UN refugee agency UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration.
In its 2027 Projected Global Resettlement Needs report, UNHCR has identified 2,369,745 refugees in priority need of resettlement over the coming year. More than half of them were displaced from conflicts and persecution in just five countries – Afghanistan (357,890), South Sudan (307,630), Sudan (306,450), Syria (283,645) and Myanmar (238,890).
On a regional basis, resettlement needs are greatest in Eastern and Southern Africa (840,610), Asia-Pacific (605,610), West and Central Africa (301,980), Middle East and North Africa (237,710) and Europe, principally Türkiye (216,180).
Today’s release of the report on refugee resettlement needs follows last week’s release by UNHCR of its latest statistics on forced displacement, showing that 117.8 million people were forcibly displaced at the end of 2025. Of these, 41.6 million are refugees, 9 million are seeking asylum, and 68.7 million are internally displaced within the borders of their country of origin.
RCOA Co-CEO Adama Kamara, who is representing Australian NGOs at the CRCP, says that the dialogue illustrates the importance of Australia’s decision in 2023 to increase the annual Refugee and Humanitarian Program to 20,000 places for the four years to mid-2027.
“With massive cuts to resettlement by North American and European states, Australia’s program is now the world’s second largest – and the largest program not to be cut so far. In 2025, 23% of refugees resettled internationally were welcomed to Australia.
“The projections released through the CRCP are a clear warning that global resettlement needs are growing while opportunities for refugees to find safety are declining.
“Over the next year, the Australian Government will decide on the size of its Humanitarian Program from July 2027 and it is essential that Australia not only maintain its commitment but look at expanding opportunities through community sponsorship, education pathways and refugee labour mobility.
“While Australia cannot possibly meet the global need for solutions for refugees alone, we can play our part through a strong Humanitarian Program, expanding complementary migration pathways for refugees, and encouraging other resettlement states to reverse recent cuts to their programs.”
Australia has demonstrated leadership in this area through initiatives such as the Skilled Refugee Labour Agreement Pilot and its role in leading the Global Taskforce on Refugee Labour Mobility. However, the Skilled Refugee Labour Agreement Pilot is yet to be renewed past the end of this month. Making it permanent would build on a successful model that enables skilled refugees to rebuild their lives while helping Australian employers address workforce shortages.
Australia also has the opportunity to expand community sponsorship through the development of an improved named sponsorship program, building on lessons learned from the Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot and the Community Support Program. These programs have strong community support and provide an excellent opportunity to expand, rather than replace, the Australian Government’s commitment to refugee resettlement.
As Australia marks Refugee Week, UNHCR’s projections for resettlement need are a reminder that the need for refugee protection continues to grow around the world.
This year’s theme, A Million Stories, celebrates the more than one million refugees who have helped shape Australia since 1947. Their stories reflect the contribution people who once were refugees have made to communities across the country and the opportunities that can emerge when people are given safety and the chance to rebuild their lives.
