urban areas. Some 931,000 people were reported to be living in rural areas dispersed among the local population. The type of accommodation and location information was unknown or unclear for 2.2 million refugees. The number of refugees living in urban areas outnumbered those in camps for the first time in 2007. This was primarily the result of large numbers of Iraqi refugees having sought refuge in urban centres in Jordan, Lebanon, and the Syrian Arab Republic. The gap between the two categories has significantly increased ever since. Based on available data, by the end of 2009 the number of refugees in urban sites had almost doubled compared to those living in camps (see Figure 9). Over 85 per cent of refugees in urban areas were found in Asia and the Middle East, mainly in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Jordan, Pakistan, and the Syrian Arab Republic. Women represented on average less than half (47%) of refugees in urban areas, with figures ranging from 10 per cent in Oceania to 47 per cent in Asia. VI. Asylum-seekers The following sections present some of the main trends related to asylum applications lodged on an individual basis. The figures do not include mass refugee movements nor do they make reference to people who have been accorded refugee status on a group or prima facie basis. During 2009, at least 922,500(20) individual applications TABLE 3 for asylum or refugee status were submitted to New and appeal applications governments or UNHCR offices in 159 countries or received | 2007-2009 territories. This constitutes a 5 per cent increase 2007 2008 2009 compared to the previous year (875,300 claims) and State* 548,000 765,800 777,400 the third consecutive annual rise. In industrialized UNHCR 79,800 73,400 119,100 countries figures have remained stable.(21) Two main 26,000 36,100 26,000 Jointly** reasons explain this trend. The first is the persistent 653,800 875,300 922,500 Total high number of asylum applications in South Africa 12% 8% 13% % UNHCR only (222,000 claims in 2009; and 207,000 in 2008). The * Includes revised estimates. second is the continued high number of certain ** Refers to refugee status determination conducted jointly between populations seeking international protection during the UNHCR and the Government. year, particularly those from Afghanistan, Colombia, Ethiopia, Myanmar and Zimbabwe. Out of the provisional total of 922,500 asylum claims, an estimated 836,100 were initial applications,(22) lodged in first instance procedures, and 86,400 claims were submitted on appeal or with courts. (23) UNHCR offices registered some 119,100 applications out of the total of 922,500 claims in 2009. This number increased by 62 per cent compared to 2008 (73,400 claims). The Office’s share in the global number of applications registered stood at 13 per cent in 2009 compared to 8 per cent in 2008 and 12 per cent in 2007. The recent increase is primarily due to the higher number of applications registered with UNHCR offices in Malaysia (24) and Somalia. 20 Owing to the fact that some European countries have not yet released all their national asylum data at the time of writing, this figure is likely to be revised upwards later this year. 21 For a detailed analysis of asylum trends in industrialized countries, see Asylum Levels and Trends in Industrialized Countries, 2009, UNHCR Geneva, March 2010, available at: http://www.unhcr.org/statistics. 22 Despite the fact that statistical reporting on new asylum-seekers has improved in recent years, in particular in Europe, it should be borne in mind that the data include a significant number of repeat claims, i.e. the applicant submitted at least one previous application in the same or another country. 23 Statistical information on outcomes of asylum appeals and court proceedings is under-reported in UNHCR statistics, particularly in developed countries, as this type of data is often either not collected by States or not published separately. 24 Rather than reflecting a new influx into Malaysia, most asylum applicants have been in the country for a number of years. 16 2009 Global Trends