The number of displaced people worldwide has hit a record high of 70.8 million, with developing nations bearing the brunt of an influx of refugees fleeing conflict and political oppression, according to a United Nations report released for Refugee Week.

Key points: Developing countries host 80 per cent of refugees, Turkey tops the list at 3.7 million

Developing countries host 80 per cent of refugees, Turkey tops the list at 3.7 million Australia has accepted more than 900,000 refugees since 1947

Australia has accepted more than 900,000 refugees since 1947 Australia accept the thrid highest number of refugees via the UN resettlement program

Meanwhile, the number of refugees in the world — defined as people displaced outside of their home country due to persecution — has doubled to 25.9 million since 2012 due to a series of new and ongoing conflicts.

"More people have been forced to flee and fewer are able to safely return to their country of origin," Catherine Stubberfield, spokeswoman for the UN's Refugee Agency in Canberra, told ABC News.

Developing countries are still host to the majority of refugees, reported to be housing some 80 per cent.

Turkey has the highest number at 3.7 million, followed by Pakistan with 1.4 million and Uganda with 1.2 million.

While asylum is a huge political topic in Australia, our refugee intake pales in comparison, having accepted some 900,000 refugees since 1947 including 18,750 last year, putting us in 20th place worldwide, according to the Refugee Council of Australia.

How do Australia's refugee policies compare globally?

Developing countries host 80 per cent of the world's refugees. ( ABC News: Tracey Shelton )

The Refugee Convention to which Australia is a signatory was established in 1951 during a period of mass displacement after World War II.

As a signatory, Australia is obliged under international law to offer protection to anyone officially requesting it and who qualifies as a refugee.

Australia has accepted the third-most refugees via the UN's resettlement program after the US and Canada, but Canberra has been widely criticised for "punitive policies" towards asylum seekers who arrive onshore, particularly by boat.

"While Australia's resettlement program is world class, Australia's treatment of refugees who come to Australia seeking protection is now leading the world in the opposite direction — to the most punitive policies aimed to deter vulnerable people from seeking safety," the Refugee Council of Australian said in a statement.

Marcella Brasset, campaign manager at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, said Australia is possibly the only country in the world "to criminalise seeking asylum".

"The Liberal government under the Howard leadership created a false narrative that people who come by boat are criminals," Ms Brasset told the ABC.

"We haven't been able to shake that off for the last 20 years."

This narrative has influenced policy, media narratives and public attitudes towards asylum seekers, she said, adding that Australia has a policy of "imprisoning people indefinitely just for seeking asylum".

A spokeswoman for Immigration Minister David Coleman told the ABC that "Australia's humanitarian program is amongst the most generous in the world".

"Secure borders are essential to maintaining an orderly, sovereign immigration program."

Australia's long history of assisting refugees

Refugees have made many contributions towards Australia's multicultural society. ( ABC News: Lily Nothling )

Statistics and reports from the Parliament of Australia show refugees have often arrived in waves from different areas of the world following conflicts and political crackdowns.

After World War II, many refugees arrived from European countries, including Germany, Poland and Ukraine.

The next wave came largely from countries under Soviet rule, as many fled Hungary and Czechoslovakia in the 1950s and 1960s.

The mid-1970s saw Australia's first influx of refugees arriving by boat from South-East Asia, as the aftermath of the Vietnam War displaced over half of the Vietnamese population.

Top countries of origin for persons granted Australian refugee visas Year Iraq Syria Myanmar Congo Afghan Eritrea Ethiopia 2017-18 4,630 3,227 2,043 1,355 1,130 494 481 2016-17 7,478 6,261 1,747 336 1,958 323 323 2015-16 4,358 4,261 1,951 657 1,714 291 337 2014-15 2,332 2,230 2,027 384 1,800 362 282 2013-14 2,353 1,007 1,818 323 2,744 277 221 Figures from the Australian Government Department of Home Affairs

After the Tiananmen Square massacre in China in 1989, then prime minister Bob Hawke made the unilateral decision to let the 27,000 Chinese students present in Australia stay.

His government went on to grant a total of 42,000 permanent visas for Chinese students.

In the 1990s, another wave of boats began to arrive on Australian shores averaging around 300 people per year, according to government figures.

Most of those coming by boat were from Cambodia, Vietnam and southern China, while another influx of offshore applications came from Bosnia and Croatia where a bloody war and acts of genocide continued for almost a decade, resulting in the eventual break-up of Yugoslavia into seven separate nations.

By the end of the 1990s, boats began arriving carrying asylum seekers from the Middle East, as thousands fled oppressive regions and conflict in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere.

"Australia has a long history of assisting refugees," Mr Coleman said in a statement for Refugee Week.

Mr Coleman emphasised the many contributions refugees have made towards Australia's multicultural society and pledged to offer 18,750 places to people in need this year.

"This year we will reflect on the personal qualities of courage, determination and resilience — traits embodied by so many humanitarian entrants to Australia," he said.

The mid 70's saw Australia's first influx of refugees arriving by boat from South East Asia. ( Supplied: Border Force )

'Australian people are very welcoming' despite policy

In the past decade, the number of people seeking asylum from the Middle East has increased dramatically.

Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan have been in the top five countries among those receiving refugee status in Australia for the past five years due to ongoing conflicts and persecution of minority groups, some of which has been labelled by many as genocide.

Political persecution, people fleeing authoritarian governments and women fleeing gender violence have also driven up numbers from the region.

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people have fled violence in Myanmar. ( UNHCR: Andrew McConnell )

Hundreds of thousands have fled violence in Myanmar, in particular the Rohingya people who have faced crimes amounting to genocide.

Other groups granted refugee status in Australia from Asia include many from the LGBT community fleeing harsh laws in places like Malaysia and activists fleeing political persecution from China.

Insurgencies in the Congo, Ethiopia and Somalia have also resulted in large numbers of applications from these countries, and another influx of asylum seekers has come from Sudan as attacks on protesters by government forces increase.

"There are millions of people who are in need of a safe home," Ms Brasset told the ABC.

"Australia — as a people — is a very welcoming country … but our government has sought to criminalise people for political ends.

"It's such a massive shame because I don't think that is the culture of the majority of Australians."