Trends in Asylum Migration to Industrialized Countries, 1990–2001

This chapter outlines trends and patterns in movements of asylum seekers to Western, industrialized countries from 1990 to 2001. The receiving countries covered are the United States, Canada, Australia and Western Europe (which here comprises the Member States of the EU in 2002, Norway and Switzerland). Other industrialized states such as Japan and New Zealand have not been included since the numbers of asylum seekers involved are relatively small. All sending countries are included in the data, but our discussion will focus mainly on the countries of origin of the largest numbers – generally the ‘top ten’ sending countries for each receiving area. The aims of the desk study reported here are largely descriptive, and its main substance is contained in the tables and charts (the latter are in the Appendix). However, the chapter also has analytical aspects, as it is not possible to describe the evolution of the movements without examining the causes of migratory patterns and the factors responsible for change.