How Peace Agreements Address Displaced Persons: Key Trends and Challenges

Abstract

There is a concerning mismatch between the rise in displacement and the decline in peace agreements addressing it. At the end of 2024, an estimated 123 million people were forcibly displaced, with 73.5 million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) displaced by conflict and violence. Yet, only 16% of international- and national-level agreements signed between 1990 and 2024 address displacement in a substantive way. While global displacement has been increasing over time, reaching record levels since 2019, the proportion of new peace agreements addressing displacement substantively has been declining.