Overview
The UNHCR Representation to Central Asia is based in Almaty, managing UNHCR activities across the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Since their independence in 1991, Central Asian countries have generously sheltered thousands of people fleeing war, persecution, or human rights violations. Central Asia was also home to a considerable stateless population – largely a result of the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. UNHCR now works with Central Asian governments to support their protection of forcibly displaced and stateless people, focusing on strengthening local ownership of and investment in quality asylum systems, pursuing opportunities for local integration of refugees, eradicating statelessness, and building capacity to respond to emergencies.
Refugees in Central Asia JSON 
8,866
Last updated 30 Jun 2024
Source - Government, UNHCR 
Refugees by Location JSON  .CSV 
Location name Source Data date Population
Kazakhstan Government 30 Jun 2024   3.6% 317
Kyrgyzstan Government 30 Jun 2024   3.1% 272
Tajikistan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   93.2% 8,259
Turkmenistan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   0.1% 13
Uzbekistan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   0.1% 5

Refugee-like in Central Asia JSON 
106,212
Last updated 30 Jun 2024
Source - UNHCR 
People in refugee-like situations by Location JSON 
Location name Source Data date Population
Kazakhstan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   61.7% 65,511
Kyrgyzstan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   24.0% 25,476
Tajikistan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   2.6% 2,775
Turkmenistan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   3.3% 3,500
Uzbekistan UNHCR 30 Jun 2024   8.4% 8,950

People in refugee-like situation refers to a category which is descriptive in nature and includes groups of people who are outside their country or territory of origin and who face protection risks similar to those of refugees, but for whom refugee status has, for practical or other reasons, not been ascertained. For Uzbekistan, people in refugee-like situations include Afghan nationals residing temporarily in Uzbekistan. This is according to publicly accessible information, as there are no official data provided by the Government of Uzbekistan.

Asylum-seekers in Central Asia JSON 
4,956
Last updated 30 Jun 2024
Source - Government, UNHCR 
Asylum-seekers by Location JSON  .CSV 
Location name Source Data date Population
Kazakhstan Government 30 Jun 2024   7.1% 352
Kyrgyzstan Government 30 Jun 2024   50.1% 2,482
Tajikistan UNHCR, Government 30 Jun 2024   42.8% 2,122

Stateless persons in Central Asia JSON 
36,994
Last updated 30 Jun 2024
Source - UNHCR, Government, NGO 
Stateless persons by Location JSON 
Location name Source Data date Population
Kazakhstan UNHCR, Government 30 Jun 2024   21.7% 8,019
Kyrgyzstan UNHCR, Government 30 Jun 2024   0.2% 60
Tajikistan UNHCR, Government 30 Jun 2024   9.8% 3,629
Turkmenistan NGO 30 Jun 2024   7.5% 2,790
Uzbekistan Government 30 Jun 2024   60.8% 22,496

  Latest Documents
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    Create date: 28 October 2024 (1 month ago)
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    Publish date: 21 December 2023 (1 year ago)
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    Publish date: 19 April 2023 (1 year ago)
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    Publish date: 20 July 2020 (4 years ago)
    Create date: 28 March 2017 (7 years ago)
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    •   View all (66)
    UNHCR is grateful for contributions directly to operations in Central Asia, as well as donors of unearmarked and flexible funding, including from: Australia | Belgium | Denmark | España con ACNUR | European Union | France | Ireland | Japan for UNHCR | Netherlands (Kingdom of) | Norway | Private donors in the Republic of Korea | Private donors in Italy | Republic of Korea | Sweden | Switzerland | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | U.S.A.

    Funding (2024)
    10.033.900,00 US$
    Total appeal
    Date of Funding Data 31 August 2024 (3 months ago)
    UNHCR Central Asia HELP
      UNHCR Central Asia News and Stories
    Five things to know about statelessness [18 Sep 2024]
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    Media outlets explore statelessness and the impact on Central Asian communities [2 Sep 2024]
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      UNHCR Central Asia Microdata Library

    The UNHCR Microdata Library (MDL) contains unit-level microdata collected directly by UNHCR or indirectly through its partners. Metadata, reports, or survey questionnaires are also provided for complementary information on the datasets. All datasets on the MDL are anonymized and available to researchers and humanitarian organizations upon request. Organizations which collect relevant data are highly encouraged to submit datasets for dissemination through the MDL.

  • Post-Distribution Monitoring of Cash-Based Intervention 2023

    Kazakhstan, 2023   MicroData View details | Get Microdata
    Authoring Entity: UNHCR
    Published: 28 December 2023

  • Post-Distribution Monitoring of Cash-Based Intervention 2023

    Kyrgyzstan, 2023   MicroData View details | Get Microdata
    Authoring Entity: UNHCR
    Published: 26 January 2024

  • Results Monitoring Survey 2023

    Tajikistan, 2023   MicroData View details | Get Microdata
    Authoring Entity: UNHCR
    Published: 01 April 2024
    • UNHCR Central Asia Social Media
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    For more information, please contact the following focal point(s)

    For any inquiry kazal@unhcr.org