4. Muslim migrants around the world
Muslims account for 29% of global migrants and most commonly live in the Middle-East North Africa and Asia-Pacific regions.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Muslims account for 29% of global migrants and most commonly live in the Middle-East North Africa and Asia-Pacific regions.
Migrants tend to move to regions where their religion is common, but some regions also see large influxes of migrants from minority religious groups.
Hindus make up just 5% of all migrants. They most commonly live in the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and North Africa, and North America.
Religiously unaffiliated people are underrepresented among migrants, making up 13% of migrants but 23% of the global population.
Buddhist migrants – who make up 4% of all migrants – are heavily concentrated in the Asia-Pacific region.
Christians are the largest religious group among migrants. Most Christian migrants live in Europe or North America.
Jews are more likely than other major religious groups to live outside their country of birth, yet they account for just 1% of all global migrants.
Migration outpaced global population growth by 83% to 47% from 1990-2020. Buddhist and Muslim migrants more than doubled in number during this time.
Muslims are the world’s fastest-growing and second-largest religious group. In the Middle East-North Africa region, they make up 94% of the population.
Every religious group grew in count in the Middle East and North Africa – a Muslim-majority region – between 2010 and 2020.
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