ABSTRACT

When comparing the impact of the various types of disasters on homelessness across regions, taking into account population size, the chief cause of homelessness during the 1990s was armed conflict in Africa (causing 394 of every 10,000 people to lose their homes). Next are natural disasters (222 per 10,000 of population) and armed conflict (169 per 10,000 of population) in Asia. Overall, Africa was hit hardest with nearly 450 homeless people per 10,000 of the population, followed closely by Asia (390 people). The numbers for Europe (93), Oceania (83) and the Americas6 (40) are much lower (see Table 15.3).