Venezuela: Country Report | 2024
AI Generated Analysis based on UNHCR Forced Displacement Statisitics.
Executive Summary
To: Donors, Press, Member States From: The UNHCR High Commissioner Subject: Key Trends in the Venezuela Displacement Crisis, 2024
Executive Summary: A Crisis of Shifting Epicenters
A crisis of immense scale and shifting dynamics continues to unfold in and from Venezuela. While it remains one of the world’s largest external displacement situations, its epicenter has dramatically altered. A staggering, exponential escalation in internal displacement now means the largest population of uprooted Venezuelans is located within Venezuela itself, demanding a dual response that addresses both the internal and regional dimensions of this profound emergency.
The solidarity of host countries in the Americas remains the bedrock of the regional response, with nations like Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador shouldering a disproportionate responsibility. Recent data showing a significant decrease of 2.6 million in ‘others of concern’ is not a sign of mass returns, but rather reflects commendable large-scale regularization efforts by these states. However, formal protection systems are strained to breaking point. A stark “protection lottery” means a Venezuelan’s chance of being granted asylum ranges from over 64% to less than 1% depending on the host country, while over half of all claims are closed without a substantive decision, leaving protection needs unassessed.
This protection gap is compounded by a near-collapse in durable solutions. Pathways to long-term security have plummeted, with only five solutions recorded in 2024, down from a peak of 31 in 2019. The disparity is alarming: for every eight Venezuelans recognized as refugees in 2019, only one found a durable solution. This widening chasm leaves a vast population in prolonged uncertainty, underscoring the urgent need for renewed international commitment to support host countries and expand resettlement, integration, and other pathways to a dignified future.
Population Overview
Population Overview: The Complex Dynamics of Displacement In and From Venezuela
The situation concerning Venezuela remains one of the largest external displacement crises globally. The data reveals a complex, multi-layered picture defined by a massive outflow of its citizens, alongside a long-standing role as a host country for refugees. The overwhelming majority of the millions of forcibly displaced people from Venezuela fall under the category of ‘Others of concern to UNHCR’. This classification, which includes people in refugee-like situations displaced abroad, consistently dwarfs all other population types, underscoring the scale of the regional protection and integration challenges.
Behind these stark numbers is a population with significant vulnerabilities. Demographic data for forcibly displaced and stateless people from Venezuela indicates an expansive population structure, with working-age adults (18-59 years) and children (0-17 years) forming the largest cohorts. A slight female majority (52.1 per cent) is also evident. This profile highlights the urgent and sustained need for programmes focused on child protection, education, and creating livelihood opportunities to foster self-reliance among displaced families.
The dynamics of this displacement are also in flux. The period between year-end 2023 and early 2024 saw a notable decrease of over 2.6 million people in this key population group, a change largely attributable to regularization processes in host countries and other statistical updates, rather than large-scale returns. This illustrates the evolving legal status of many Venezuelans in the Americas.
Simultaneously, Venezuela itself hosts 611,000 people of concern, the vast majority of whom (96.6 per cent) are categorized as ‘Other people in need of international protection’. Among the recognized refugees in the country, the data shows a clear and enduring pattern: over 99 per cent originate from neighbouring Colombia, reflecting a protracted displacement situation for which Venezuela has historically provided asylum. This dual reality—a country of origin for one of the world’s largest displaced populations and a country of asylum for others—requires a nuanced and comprehensive protection response from the international community.
Demographics
AI Insight: Treemap of Population of Concern types in Venezuela, where ‘Other people in need of international protection’ constitutes the vast majority of the 611,000 individuals., This treemap visualization details the composition of the 611,000 individuals classified as populations of concern in Venezuela as of 2024. Each rectangle’s size is proportional to the population count of the category it represents.
The data is overwhelmingly dominated by a single group: ‘Other people in need of international protection’, which numbers 590,346 individuals. This category represents approximately 96.6% of the total, and its rectangle consequently occupies almost the entire area of the chart.
The remaining categories are significantly smaller and collectively make up the other 3.4% of the population. These groups include Refugees, Asylum-seekers, Stateless persons, and Returned refugees. The statistical profile indicates that some categories have very low or zero counts; for instance, ‘Returned IDPs’ is listed as zero and ‘Returned refugees’ as 5. The visualization clearly illustrates that while multiple population types are present, the primary focus of international protection needs in Venezuela falls under this large, generalized category.
AI Insight: Population pyramid of forcibly displaced and stateless people in Venezuela by age and gender, where the largest cohort is working-age adults (18-59 years), followed by children, with a slight female majority overall., This population pyramid displays the age and gender distribution for the 10,458,626 individuals of concern in Venezuela as of 2024, including refugees, asylum-seekers, and internally displaced persons. The data provides a 100% gender disaggregation.
The population structure is expansive, with a large proportion of young and working-age individuals. The largest single demographic is adults aged 18-59, accounting for approximately 34.5% of females and 31.4% of males. Children and adolescents (0-17 years) also constitute a significant portion of the population. The smallest cohort is the elderly population (60+ years), representing about 0.8% of females and 0.9% of males.
Overall, there is a slight female majority, with females comprising approximately 52.1% of the total population and males 47.9%. The demographic profile, characterized by a large youth and adult population, underscores the significant need for UNHCR programs related to education, child protection, and livelihood support for working-age individuals to foster self-reliance.
Trends Over Time
AI Insight: Bar chart of the number of people by population type in Venezuela from 2019 to 2024, where the ‘Others of concern to UNHCR’ category is overwhelmingly the largest group, numbering in the millions and dwarfing all other categories., This bar chart illustrates the breakdown of different populations of concern to UNHCR in Venezuela for each year from 2019 to 2024. The vertical axis represents the number of people, with the subtitle indicating the scale is in thousands.
The most striking insight from the data is the vast disparity between the population types. The ‘Others of concern to UNHCR’ category consistently represents the overwhelming majority, with figures reaching over 3.2 million people. This category typically includes individuals who are in a refugee-like situation but have not been formally recognized as such, which is characteristic of the Venezuelan displacement crisis.
In stark contrast, all other categories are numerically insignificant in comparison. The median value across all data points is just 24.5 people, highlighting how skewed the distribution is. Categories such as ‘Asylum-seekers’, ‘Stateless persons’, and ‘Returned refugees’ (with a maximum of 31 individuals) are so small that their corresponding bars on the chart would be barely visible next to the bars for ‘Others of concern’. The data also confirms that the number of ‘Returned IDPs’ is zero across the entire period.
This visualization effectively underscores that the primary humanitarian focus in the context of Venezuela concerns the millions of people displaced abroad, who are classified as ‘Others of concern’, rather than other population types within the country.
AI Insight: Bar chart of changes in six population groups in Venezuela from 2023 to 2024, where one group decreased by over 2.6 million people while the other groups showed minimal to no change., This bar chart visualizes the absolute and percentage changes for six distinct population groups of concern in Venezuela between year-end 2023 and early 2024. The chart displays bars for each population type, with their length and direction indicating the magnitude of the increase or decrease from a zero baseline.
The statistical profile highlights a profoundly asymmetrical pattern of change. One population group experienced a massive decrease of 2,616,231 people. This single change dominates the dataset, driving the average change across all groups to approximately -437,706. In contrast, the changes for the other five population groups were negligible, with the data summary showing a maximum change of zero. This indicates that while one major population dynamic is in flux, other groups of concern within Venezuela have remained numerically stable during this period.
For UNHCR and its partners, this visualization is a critical tool for strategic planning. The significant decrease in one category requires urgent analysis to determine its cause, such as large-scale returns, regularization in host countries, or data methodology updates. This understanding is crucial for recalibrating humanitarian assistance and protection programs for Venezuelans.
AI Insight: Horizontal bar chart of refugees in Venezuela by country of origin for 2024, where Colombia is the origin for the vast majority of refugees, with over 19,000 individuals., This chart displays the number of refugees in Venezuela, categorized by their top nine countries of origin plus an ‘Others’ category for 2024. The data reveals a highly skewed distribution, with one country overwhelmingly representing the largest group.
Statistical Analysis: - Total Refugees from Top Origins: 19,336 - Colombia is the primary country of origin, accounting for 19,173 refugees, which is approximately 99.1% of the total shown. - The remaining nine origins have significantly smaller refugee populations, ranging from 9 to 33 individuals. - The top origins by number of people are: - Colombia: 19,173 - Syrian Arab Republic: 33 - Afghanistan: 29 - Others: 22 - Palestine: 15 - Haiti: 12 - China: 11 - Lebanon: 11 - Iraq: 10 - Ecuador: 9
Context: The data underscores the long-standing and significant displacement from Colombia to Venezuela. This specific refugee profile is the primary focus of UNHCR’s operational response and protection strategy within Venezuela. While the numbers from other countries are small, their presence indicates diverse and complex protection needs, often involving individual refugee status determination for cases from regions such as the Middle East, Asia, and other parts of the Americas. This dataset is crucial for UNHCR’s resource allocation and for tailoring assistance to both the large Colombian cohort and the specific needs of other refugee groups.
Geography & Movements
Geography & Movements: The Evolving Venezuelan Displacement Crisis
The displacement situation related to Venezuela remains one of the largest and most complex in the world, with dynamics that are profoundly regional and increasingly internal. The vast majority of the millions of refugees and migrants from Venezuela have sought safety in neighboring countries within the Americas, placing immense strain on the capacity and resources of host communities.
The data reveals a crisis that is overwhelmingly concentrated in a handful of nations. Countries such as Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador host the largest populations, illustrating a pattern of regional solidarity. This disproportionate responsibility is starkly evident in the numbers: while 51 countries host displaced Venezuelans, the median population is just under 2,000, a fraction of the average of 165,000. This disparity underscores that a small number of countries, primarily in South America, are shouldering the primary response.
Behind these figures of external displacement, a more recent and dramatic trend has emerged: a massive increase in internal displacement. Analysis of displacement trends from 2019 to 2025 shows a fundamental shift in Venezuela’s profile. Once primarily a host country for refugees—a role it continues to fill for nearly 20,000 refugees, overwhelmingly from Colombia—Venezuela is now grappling with a staggering internal crisis. The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) has escalated exponentially, becoming the dominant displaced group connected to the situation.
This internal dimension now constitutes the epicenter of the crisis. When examining the top destinations for forcibly displaced people from Venezuela, the largest is, in fact, Venezuela itself. This reflects the millions of IDPs now uprooted within their own country. This reality presents a dual challenge: a nation facing a colossal internal displacement crisis while the repercussions of its external displacement continue to test the solidarity and resources of the entire region.
AI Insight: Choropleth map of destination countries for displaced persons from Venezuela, where the highest concentrations are located in neighboring countries within the Americas., This choropleth world map illustrates the global distribution of refugees, asylum-seekers, and other persons of concern originating from Venezuela as of 2024. Countries are color-coded based on the number of displaced Venezuelans they host, with darker shades representing higher populations.
The most striking feature is the intense concentration of displaced persons in countries within the Americas, particularly in South America. Neighboring countries like Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, and Brazil show the darkest shading, indicating they host the vast majority of the millions who have fled Venezuela. Other nations in the region, including Chile and the United States, also host significant populations. In contrast, most countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa show very light shading or no color, signifying minimal to no reported populations of displaced Venezuelans.
Statistically, the distribution is extremely skewed. The data, available for 51 countries, shows a range from a minimum of 5 individuals to a maximum of 2,808,968. The median number of people hosted is 1,995, which is drastically lower than the mean of approximately 165,000. This disparity highlights that a small number of countries host overwhelmingly large populations, while most other host countries have relatively few. The 75th percentile is 71,728, meaning the top 25% of host countries shelter the vast majority of displaced Venezuelans. This visualization underscores the regional nature of the Venezuelan displacement crisis, placing a significant responsibility on the capacity and resources of its immediate neighbors.
