Presencial: Sala Àngels Torrents, CED

Virtual: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7905645674
Codi: 1984

Short bio
Mohammad Jalal Abbasi-Shavazi is a Professor of Demography, University of Tehran (on leave), and Honorary Professor, School of Demography, the Australian National University. He is currently associated with the International Institute of Applied System Analysis (IIASA) and the Vienna Institute of Demography. He has served as the Head of the Department of Demography of the University of Tehran, the Director of the Iran National Institute of Population Research, the President of Asian Population Association, the President of the Population Association of Iran, and is a council member of the IUSSP. Abbasi’s research focuses on three main topics: Fertility, International and Forced Migration, and Muslim Demography. His prize-winning co-authored book (with McDonald and Hosseini-Chavoshi) on Fertility Transition in Iran and his co-edited (with Hugo and Kraly) book on Demography of Refugee and Forced Migration are the outcome of his long-term research and collaborations in these areas. Abbasi has received several scientific prizes including the 2011 United Nations Population Award, the 2016 Distinguished Researcher of the Year in Iran, and the 2021 University of Tehran Distinguished Professor of Education Award.

Abstract
International migration has always been an important issue for research and policy in almost every society and globally. Discussions and studies of migration are focused primarily on voluntary migration, and little attention is given to the reasons, consequences, and potential of forced migration. Yet, forced migration, especially refugees, makes up a significant proportion of international moves, most of it being south-south in nature. The number of forcibly displaced persons in the world surpassed 108 million by the end of 2022. A vast majority (76%) of the displaced population live in low and middle-income countries. While Syria and Afghanistan have been the top refugee-sending countries for decades, Ukraine has also become a source of population displacement as more than 6.2 million Ukrainians fled to other European countries after the Russian war in Ukraine. In addition to a large-scale population displacement due to war and conflicts, a significant number of refugees are environmentally driven. Despite the increasing scale and complexity of population displacement, this is still a neglected and under-researched topic within Demography. This presentation illustrates the current situation of global population displacement by region with an emphasis on population displacement within and from Afghanistan. The need for research and training programs on the demography of forced migration as well as policy implications for Europe as the host and potential destination of a sizable number of refugees are discussed.