Why This is Important
Forced displacement can profoundly disrupt the relationships, communities, educational opportunities, and systems of support that children and youth rely upon as they grow and plan their futures. These challenges can become particularly complex for young people navigating disability, interrupted education, trauma, migration, social exclusion, poverty, language barriers, or other intersecting circumstances.
The diversity of displacement experiences also makes simple category or label-based solutions inadequate. Disability, educational need, vulnerability, inclusion, and appropriate support are understood and identified differently across cultural, institutional, and national contexts (Williamson et al., 2026). Also, reliable global estimates of disability among forcibly displaced populations remain limited. REACH therefore focuses on understanding how inclusive relationships, communities, institutions, and systems can 'pragmatically and contextually' respond to the diverse circumstances and needs of displaced experiencing complex life circumstances.
QUICK GLANCE AT GLOBAL FORCED DISPLACEMENT
- 17.8 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide at the end of 2025, approximately 1 in every 70 people on Earth (UNHCR, 2026).
- 41.6 million people were refugees at the end of 2025 (UNHCR, 2026).
- 39% of the world's refugees were children (UNHCR, 2026).
- 68.7 million people remained internally displaced within their own countries because of conflict or violence (UNHCR, 2026).
- An estimated 1.3 billion people worldwide, approximately 16% of the global population, experience significant disability (WHO, 2023).
- Reliable global data identifying how many forcibly displaced children and youth experience disability or other forms of complexity remain limited.