Climate Change and Migration in Vulnerable Countries: A snapshot of least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States
Publication year
Resource type
UNCCD Library
Material Type
Book
Climate change and its impacts are experienced worldwide, reshaping irrevocably migration patterns on all continents. Examples of migration occurring in a changing climate are numerous:
(a) communities in Pacific islands forced to plan for relocation further inland due to coastal erosion;
(b) storms in populous Asian countries displacing tens of thousands of people;
(c) migration of fisherfolks from coastal villages in West Africa to cities because of the depletion of fish resources linked
to ocean acidification;
(d) rural to urban migration in Central Asia fueled by climate impacts on rural livelihoods;
(e) nomadic populations in East Africa altering their traditional migration patterns to cope with the impacts of desertification;
(f) droughts in Latin America leading to internal and international migration.
Some people migrate to seek better opportunities, reacting to climate change impacts on their livelihoods, their health or their food security. Other people, sometimes entire communities, are displaced involuntarily, as they flee the destruction of sudden-onset disasters and extreme weather events, often amplified by climate change. In 2017, 18.8 million people were newly displaced in the context of sudden-onset disasters within their own countries, and between 2008 and 2017, an average of 24.6 million people were displaced per year.
Others have to relocate away from their ancestral land, and planned relocation of communities because of coastal erosion and sealevel rise, for instance, is a new reality, notably for many Pacific small island developing States (SIDS). Finally, some people are simply unable to move due to lack of means and become trapped in places where the adverse impacts of climate change represent a threat to their well being. People unable to migrate also need to be included in policy development. These migratory movements can occur at several levels: internally within a country or across borders, regionally and internationally, and on different time scales, from temporary to permanent migration.
(a) communities in Pacific islands forced to plan for relocation further inland due to coastal erosion;
(b) storms in populous Asian countries displacing tens of thousands of people;
(c) migration of fisherfolks from coastal villages in West Africa to cities because of the depletion of fish resources linked
to ocean acidification;
(d) rural to urban migration in Central Asia fueled by climate impacts on rural livelihoods;
(e) nomadic populations in East Africa altering their traditional migration patterns to cope with the impacts of desertification;
(f) droughts in Latin America leading to internal and international migration.
Some people migrate to seek better opportunities, reacting to climate change impacts on their livelihoods, their health or their food security. Other people, sometimes entire communities, are displaced involuntarily, as they flee the destruction of sudden-onset disasters and extreme weather events, often amplified by climate change. In 2017, 18.8 million people were newly displaced in the context of sudden-onset disasters within their own countries, and between 2008 and 2017, an average of 24.6 million people were displaced per year.
Others have to relocate away from their ancestral land, and planned relocation of communities because of coastal erosion and sealevel rise, for instance, is a new reality, notably for many Pacific small island developing States (SIDS). Finally, some people are simply unable to move due to lack of means and become trapped in places where the adverse impacts of climate change represent a threat to their well being. People unable to migrate also need to be included in policy development. These migratory movements can occur at several levels: internally within a country or across borders, regionally and internationally, and on different time scales, from temporary to permanent migration.
Geographical Keywords
Pacific Island States
Africa
Keywords
migration
climate change
Small Island Developing States (SIDS)
Least Developed Countries (LDCs)
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