Children seeking asylum: the psychological and developmental impact of the refugee experience

At the end of 2008 the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated that there were 10 million refugees around the world and over 14 million internally displaced persons. Many more were deemed stateless (over 6 million), with a total of 34 million "of concern" to the agency. Around one-third of these persons were children aged 6-17 years, and around 10% were less than five years of age. Infants and children constitute a significant proportion of those impacted by war, conflict, displacement and loss and are among the most vulnerable.