Please activate JavaScript!
Please install Adobe Flash Player, click here for download
ePaper created 2015-12-01, 11:33:23 | version 1.43.00
akzente 3/15 25 Extreme weather events are occurring more frequently, depriving people of their livelihoods and displacing them in growing numbers. Can you estimate how many are likely to be dis- placed by climate change in future? That’s not something we can predict, but we do know that the numbers are increasing. Much will depend on how well countries adapt to the impacts of climate change and whether they take timely action to resettle communi ties at risk, for example. Prompt action can do much to reduce the number of people affected. If we take no action, we must expect large numbers of refugees. We already have an av- erage of 27 million people a year being dis- placed by natural disasters, although not al- ways as a result of climate change: the figure includes people displaced by earthquakes, for example, and of course floods occurred in the past as well. Nonetheless, there is a clear up- ward trend. Climate-induced displacement is increasing. We’re talking millions of people. So this is already happening? Yes, it’s already happening. In my view, the in- ternational community has yet to sit up and take notice, probably because most people are displaced within their own country and the problem mainly affects the poorer countries. Where is climate-induced displacement most apparent? In Africa, mainly in the Horn of Africa and the Sahel region. During the drought in Somalia in 2010 and 2011, for example, almost 300,000 people left their homes in order to avoid death by starvation. And in Central America, people often seek refuge in neighbouring countries after being displaced by disasters. In Asia, floods are increasing, and storms are becoming more frequent and more devastat- ing, causing the displacement of large num- bers of people. At present, most of these dis- placed persons remain in their home country or region, but that may change. Are these the world regions where we must ex- pect the largest increase in the number of cli- mate refugees in future? In principle, yes, but the actual extent and regional distribution will very much depend on whether the international community reaches agreement at the climate summit, whether it manages to significantly reduce emissions of harmful greenhouse gases, and whether it provides enough funds to mitigate the impacts. If it does so, the numbers will fall and migration flows will be easier to manage. If not, we must expect this to be- come a major problem. That’s why all eyes are on Paris. How can and must we help the affected coun- tries? We must invest in three areas. Firstly, we must identify all the regions at risk and launch appropriate adaptation programmes. That can include measures such as dike con- struction and targeted resettlement, but it can also mean restructuring agricultural sys- tems, for example by switching to salt-re sistant crops. Secondly, we must facilitate legal out-migration, both temporary and per- manent, from these regions. And thirdly, we must offer adequate protection to people who are displaced from their homes while also providing support to host communities, whose resources will otherwise quickly be- come overstretched. All this costs money. What role can the Green Climate Fund play here? It will cost billions. No one can say for sure, at this stage, exactly how much, but it’s money well spent. The Green Climate Fund has a key role to play because it provides funding for climate change mitigation and adaptation in poorer countries. However, the issue of climate-induced displacement has not yet been adequately incorporated into the Fund’s mandate. In the Nansen Initiative’s view, that has to change. At present, climate refugees find themselves in legal limbo. They are not protected by the 1951 Refugee Convention. Do we need an interna- tional agreement? Yes, ideally, because these refugees genu- inely have no rights whatsoever. But I think there is little chance of that at present. The problem would have to be recognised at the international level, and that is not happening at the moment. Interview: Friederike Bauer ‘We’re talking millions’ Climate-induced displacement is a neglected issue, says international lawyer Walter Kälin. As a member of the Nansen Initiative, he is campaigning for protection of climate refugees. ‘The international community has yet to sit up and take notice.’ PHOTO:PRIVATE(Page25) The full transcript of this interview with Walter Kälin can be accessed using the akzente app. www.giz.de/akzenteapp akzente 3/1525