Cameroon: Refugee population

* indicates monthly or quarterly data series
 Cameroon

Refugee population

 Latest value 485,285
 Year 2023
 Measure refugees
 Data availability 1970 - 2023
 Average 123,586
 Min - Max 4,190 - 485,285
 Source United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
 Available for Data download
The latest value from 2023 is 485285 refugees, an increase from 473887 refugees in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 233913 refugees, based on data from 159 countries. Historically, the average for Cameroon from 1970 to 2023 is 123586 refugees. The minimum value, 4190 refugees, was reached in 1983 while the maximum of 485285 refugees was recorded in 2023. See the global rankings for that indicator or use the country comparator to compare trends over time.
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 Recent values Cameroon: Refugee population
 2023 485,285
 2022 473,887
 2021 457,269
 2020 436,396
 2019 406,259
 2018 380,327
 2017 337,382
 2016 375,413




Definition: Refugees are people who are recognized as refugees under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 Protocol, the 1969 Organization of African Unity Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, people recognized as refugees in accordance with the UNHCR statute, people granted refugee-like humanitarian status, and people provided temporary protection. Asylum seekers--people who have applied for asylum or refugee status and who have not yet received a decision or who are registered as asylum seekers--are excluded. Palestinian refugees are people (and their descendants) whose residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948 and who lost their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict. Country of asylum is the country where an asylum claim was filed and granted.

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 Related indicators Latest Reference Measure
 Population size 29.88 2025 million
 Percent urban population 55.67 2025 percent
 Population density 60 2023 people per square km
 Population ages 65 and above 2.82 2025 percent
 Percent children 41.12 2025 percent
 Percent female population 50.16 2024 percent
 Rural population, percent 44.33 2025 percent
 Age dependency ratio 78.36 2025 percent
 Refugee population 485,285 2023 refugees
 Population growth 2.56 2025 percent
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