Baku, Nov 20 (IPS) – As the planet gets hotter, migration is increasing. Climate change is triggering a migration crisis and millions of people in vulnerable countries continue to be driven from their homes. The link between climate and migration is undeniable, and the global community is turning to the Baku climate talks to find urgent and sustainable solutions.
Ugochi Daniels, Deputy Director for Operations at the International Organization for Migration (IOM), spoke to IPS about the impacts of climate change and migration due to various aspects of climate change, including disaster migration, labor migration and planned relocation. . She also spoke about the scale of this urgent problem, as nearly 26 million people were displaced by the effects of climate change last year alone.
“The impact is destroying people’s livelihoods. The farms they used to farm are no longer viable and the land can no longer support livestock. So people move in search of job opportunities elsewhere. Then IOM This transfer is planned to support the government when it realizes that climate impacts are so great that certain communities can no longer adapt, rather than waiting until climate impacts have stopped moving in as organized a way as possible. The government must plan the following. “This is what we call planned relocation,” she explains.
Stressing that climate migration will become a much bigger global crisis, the World Bank says: “By 2050, 216 million people will be refugees due to climate impacts, and they will be refugees within their own countries. Nearly 1 billion people. People will be displaced, and when people move from highly climate-vulnerable areas, it is often a combination of factors that cause their communities to be affected by extreme weather events. In some cases it is necessary. “Without investment, there is no way for communities to absorb the impact of extreme weather events.”
Daniels points out that progressive COPs are causing each year to become the hottest in recorded history, with more disasters such as heat waves, droughts, floods and hurricanes. They say these problems are becoming a reality for more and more people. More about the recent floods in Spain and all the disasters happening in the developing world. In turn, this is raising awareness of the impact of climate change on people.
“Of the estimated 216 million people on the move by 2050, almost half will be in Africa: 86 million in sub-Saharan Africa and 19 million in North Africa. Africa is a very vulnerable place amidst all the other development problems the continent is dealing with. And the reality is that in Africa alone, water stress will affect 700 million people by 2030, and we’re seeing unprecedented flooding in Nigeria this year. Only Nigeria is experiencing it, Chad and the Central African Republic are experiencing similar events recently, and South Africa has El Niño and La Niña,” she explains. do.
Daniels says he is encouraged and satisfied that human mobility is integrated into the Global Goals submissions on adaptation and that there is unity around this issue. There is also the Kampala Declaration on Migration, Environment and Climate Change. The declaration has already been signed by more than 40 countries in Africa and Pacific island nations and regional groups of islands, making this issue a priority because it is reality.
“As IOM, our participation in the COP is to support our Member States in raising visibility and awareness of the links between climate change and migration and forced displacement. However, during the negotiations we are still waiting to see what the outcome will be. This will continue to be the case. We look forward to the role of Member States in recognizing the impact on vulnerable communities, prioritizing vulnerable communities in climate financing, and considering migration as a positive coping strategy for adaptation,” says Daniels.
She said: “When we talk about displacement, we must also recognize that in the current climate, migrants remit $1 trillion a year through formal and informal means, and much of that goes to developing and middle-income countries. And when we met with the diaspora at the COP last year, we said, ‘We are now financing the losses and damages.’ So we have seen that remittances have remained resilient and are continuing to grow after COVID-19. At COP, at least in the last three COPs. The decisions addressed are not only about climate change and human mobility, but also about integrating them into various tools and mechanisms, whether it be financing or indicators.”
Let me further address the issue of operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund. There are 64 climate-specific funds globally, but the Loss and Damage Fund is the only one with a specific window for vulnerable communities. As Member States continue negotiations, IOM looks forward to solutions that will improve access to climate finance, for example through new financing pathways and loss and damage funds, to help vulnerable communities adapt or relocate safely. Highlights the need for regional cooperation to manage climate-related migration and how climate migration is included in national adaptation plans.
“Importantly, vulnerable communities must be part of the solution. They must be at the table where these decisions are made. IOM is actually one of the only UN organizations, and one of the leading agencies, to support the Loss and Damage Fund and the Fund. Implementation Our top priority is to ensure that those most affected have their voices heard: well-managed migration is a very effective way to shape human civilization, climate and other issues. “Factors will continue to spur movement.” Daniels says:
“We have the tools. We know what the solutions are. There is a global compact on migration, which is how countries have agreed to work together for better migration management and better migration governance. So we have Since it has shaped our history and it will shape our future, there is no excuse for failing to ensure that it is safe, decent and regular. Anything we do not do, traffickers and smugglers will do. .”
“Vulnerability will increase and business models and human trafficking industries will continue to grow,” he said, emphasizing that more people will die in the process. There is no excuse why we do not work together on this issue. The solution is there too. So we are doing our best to ensure this.
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