World Development Indicators

Refugees under the mandate of the UNRWA by country or territory of asylum

Refugees under the mandate of UNRWA, by country of asylum. A separate series because UNRWA's mandate is separate; these are not added to the UNHCR figures.

How the World Bank defines it

Refugees under the mandate of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Palestine Refugees, are persons whose normal place of residence was Palestine during the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948 and who lost both home and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 conflict. Palestine Refugees, and descendants of Palestine refugee males, including legally adopted children, are eligible to register for UNRWA services. UNRWA accepts new applications from persons who wish to be registered as Palestine Refugees. Once they are registered with UNRWA, persons in this category are referred to as Registered Refugees. Refugees under the mandate of the UNRWA are not typically included in the statistics on refugees (and people in a refugee-like situation) under the mandate of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

World Bank, World Development Indicators — SM.POP.RRWA.EA, CC BY 4.0.

Each state is shown at the most recent year it reports, which is not the same year for every state. Comparing a 2025 figure with a 2019 one is comparing different years, and this table does not pretend otherwise.

Where the numbers come from

Refugee Population Statistics Database, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), uri: https://www.unhcr.org/refugee-statistics/download; Statistics Bulletin, UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), uri: https://www.unrwa.org/what-we-do/unrwa-statistics-bulletin