Internally Displaced People
Internally Displaced People
Azhar and his children, Osama and Dunya, share a moment together as they pose for the camera in their home.
IDP Camps
In early 2024, the Government of Iraq announced its intent to close the remaining IDPs camps in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. By mid-2024, with only the camps in Sulaymaniyah successfully closed, the decision was postponed. In 2024, over 10,000 families departed from the IDP camps. In 2025,1,500 families departed from IDP camps. Most of these families returned to their areas of origin in Ninewa Governorate, particularly Al Ba’aj and Sinjar.
In 2026, 20 IDP camps currently remain open in Iraq.
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UNHCR’s IDP Programming
As well as engaging with the Government to solve challenges impeding solutions for IDPs, until 2025, UNHCR supported IDPs, IDP returnees, and other vulnerable populations in obtaining core civil documentation. This includes documentation such as national ID cards, birth certificates, nationality certificates, and housing cards. This documentation is essential as it allows IDPs to access public services such as education, healthcare and social services.
Following the roll-out of the new Unified ID system by the Government in 2024, which facilitates easier access to the UID across the country, UNHCR has ceased its civil documentation support in 2025.
Read more about UNHCR’s support to civil documentation between 2019 and 2025
Inclusion of IDPs in Iraqi Social Safety Net
In February 2023, Iraq’s Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs decided to assess IDPs living in camps in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq for enrolment in the Social Safety Net (SSN). The Ministry also decided to prioritize the assessment of IDPs and IDP returnees in urban areas across the country, regardless of whether they registered in the Ministry´s online registration system. Those who are eligible can now receive financial support to cover their basic needs, which been an important step forward in providing solutions for internally displaced populations.