Asylum Seekers in Europe
The need to seek international protection is one of the main reasons that forces people to cross borders. As the graph shows, between 2008 and 2012 there was a gradual increase in the number of asylum applications within the EU-27, after which the number of asylum seekers rose at a more rapid pace, with 400,500 applications in 2013, 594,200 in 2014 and around 1.3 million in 2015. In 2016 the number levelled off at around 1.2 million. In 2017, the number of asylum applications marked a significant decrease of 44.5% in comparison with 2016, and continued a downward path also in 2018.
In 2019, 676,300 asylum seekers applied for international protection in the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU), up by 11.2% compared with 2018. This was the first time the number of asylum applications increased year-to-year since 2015.
7. Read the text and look at the graph.
1. In which year did the number of asylum seekers reach its peak?
2. When did it start rising again?
3. What is the main reason that forces people to leave their country?
8. Discuss the questions in pairs or small groups.
1. What reasons might people have to leave their countries?
2. What are the main problems that they have to face as refugees?