Syria tops Maplecroft’s Displacement Index, while refugees from Libya’s civil war see the country rated ‘extreme risk’

New research, ranking 185 countries on the risks posed to their economies by large populations of refugees and internally displaced persons, has rated Syria as the nation most at risk, whilst the human impacts of the civil war in Libya have seen it categorised as ‘extreme risk.’


The Displacement Index, produced by risk analysis and mapping firm Maplecroft, measures the potential impact internally displaced peoples (IDPs) and refugees have on the economies, societies and business environments of countries worldwide. The index is calculated using five indicators, including displaced people and refugees per 100,000 population, overall numbers and refugees per US$1bn GDP. Sources include the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, UN OCHA and the Global Trends Report 2010 from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), released on June 20th.

The index rates 24 countries as ‘extreme risk,’ with Africa and the Middle East home to 19 of them. At the top of the ranking are Syria (1), Sudan (2), Yemen (3), Rwanda (4), Serbia (5), Chad (6), DR Congo (7), Kenya (8), Pakistan (9), and Algeria (10). Other countries of note in the ‘extreme risk’ category include Côte d'Ivoire (14), Iraq (16) and Libya (22). More >>>

Location: Cayman Islands