Part 1 On the GRID Internal displacement in 2016 As in previous years, high levels of new displacement by conflict and disaster in 2016 added to already existing high numbers of internally displaced people (IDPs). A total of 31.1 million new displacements were recorded in 125 countries and territories in 2016 – roughly the equivalent of one person forced to flee every second. Disasters continue to bring about the highest numbers of new displacements each year, while conflict-related displacement has been on an overall upward trend over the last decade (figure 1.1). As the main triggers of forced displacement currently recorded, armed conflicts and disasters brought on by sudden onset natural hazards show few if any signs of abating.3 Nor do their many underlying drivers, which include poverty and inequality, fragile and weak governance, rapid urbanisation, climate change and environmental degradation. High risk and low capacity The majority of new displacements in 2016 took place in environments characterised by a high exposure to natural and human-made hazards, high levels of socioeconomic vulnerability, and low coping capacity of both institutions and infrastructure. Of the 6.9 million new displacements by conflict, 6.6 million – more than 95 per cent – took place in countries that rank high or very high on INFORM’s risk index (see figure 1.2).4 This implies that many of the new caseloads are likely to become protracted as governments with weak coping capacity struggle to respond to the multiple, varied and complex needs of IDPs. As a result, IDPs’ vulnerability could persist and worsen over time. This is a strong reminder of how the failure to address underlying risk drivers will continue to generate cyclical crises, and to take a heavy toll on affected communities and national economies. Unresolved displacement and a failure to address the drivers of displacement risk will, in turn, result in more displacement in the future. Figure 1.1: Total annual new displacements since 2008 Source: IDMC ON THE GRID: Global internal displacement in 2016 9