The number of asylum seekers arriving in the Republic will increase this year for the first time in over a decade.
The Irish Refugee Council said numbers were rising again because unrest in many places across the world had resulted in the "worst refugee crisis for 20 years".
Numbers claiming asylum in the first eight months of the year rose by 40 per cent compared with the same period last year. And the Department of Justice is forecasting a continuation of those trends for the remainder of the year.
The increase in asylum applications this year follows an 11-year period in which numbers declined annually.
The last time applications increased was 2002, when there were a record 11,634 claims.
In the eight months to the end of August, some 854 new asylum claims were lodged, compared to 607 in the same period last year; an increase of just under 41 per cent.
The department is projecting total applications this year will reach 1,300, almost 40 per cent higher than the 950 claims seen last year.
Claimants
The number of those of Pakistani origin claiming asylum has increased by a significant 65 per cent this year, albeit from a relatively low base; 68 in the first eight months of last year against 112 for the same period this year.
Some 13 per cent of all claimants this year were from Pakistan, the highest of any nation. Nigeria was next, its citizens accounting for 11 per cent.
Last year Nigeria topped the table, with 14 per cent of all asylum seekers coming from there. Pakistan was next, the country of origin for 11 per cent of claimants.
Those working with asylum seekers here said continuing conflict between Sunni and Shia Muslims in Pakistan had driven many from the country. Attacks on Taliban strongholds were also displacing people in the region.
Context of numbers
Chief executive of the Irish Refugee Council Sue Conlan said it was important to put into context the numbers seeking asylum in Ireland. When the council examined figures for 44 industrialised nations, they found only 15 in every 10,000 asylum seekers made their claims in the Republic.
When asked if any sustained increase in numbers in coming years might not be welcomed in a country still in deep recession, she believed this did not have to be the case.
“If people understand the issues that forced [new asylum seekers] to leave their regions, let alone their countries; I think most Irish people will say to themselves ‘Okay, I understand this.’”
As well as the general levels of unrest in parts of Africa and across the Middle East driving trends, she cited the turmoil in Libya as a key factor.
She said more asylum seekers than ever were landing in Europe having departed Libya via the coast, which was no longer being policed properly because of the unrest there.
