Environment stakeholders from the eight Horn of Africa countries have issued a plea for the establishment, enactment, and implementation of a unified, binding climate, induced migration policy framework to tackle the escalating cross-border conflicts associated with climate change.
This appeal was voiced at a regional climate forum that took place in Mombasa, which was attended by representatives from the governments, civil society, and regional entities. The main theme of the forum was the rapidly escalating crisis of climate, induced displacement among border communities.
The participants acknowledged that the extended droughts, inconsistent rainfall, and scarcity of resources, especially in the Arid and Semi, Arid Lands (ASALs), have aggravated the competition for water and pasture.
This has led to the regular occurrence of violent clashes among pastoralist communities along the often porous borders, with casualties being a common consequence and the diplomatic ties between neighboring countries becoming tense.
Given Africa’s vulnerability to the repercussions of climate change, the panelists cautioned that climate, induced migration is no longer a matter of the future, but a reality of the present day. Kenya together with other countries of the Horn of Africa has been subjected to the cycle of drought, failure of rains, and environmental degradation that have been the major causes of community displacement.
The meeting of the stakeholders was convened by Horn of Africa Regional Environment Centre and Network (HoAREC) and Panafricare, with the backing of the European Union.
All stakeholders agreed that the national policies, which are piecemeal, are not sufficient for addressing the challenges of transboundary climate migration. They pointed out the necessity of a unified regional framework that would:
Grant legal recognition and protection to climate, displaced persons. Set up concerted cross, border resource, sharing mechanisms. Upgrade the structures for conflict prevention and resolution. Favor climate adaptation and mitigation strategies.
Besides policy harmonization, the participants called on governments to build reliable early warning systems that could forecast climate shocks and thus prevent displacement, related conflicts.
They argued that water harvesting, climate, smart agriculture, and sustainable rangeland management as adaptation measures should most definitely be taken into account to avert forced migration.
This meeting is held at a very critical juncture when ASAL regions in Kenya are severely impacted by drought after consecutive failed rainy seasons. The deteriorating situation has led to increased internal and cross, border migration mainly among pastoralist communities whose main source of living is livestock.
It was the stakeholders’ alarm that climate migration could further destabilize the vulnerable border areas if there is no policy action on the part of the authorities and the regional response is not coordinated. This in turn would jeopardize peace, security, and the regional integration efforts that have been already put in place.
They ended their statement by calling on the member states to speed up the process to have a binding regional climate migration framework. Such a framework is seen as an indispensable move toward the protection of human lives as well as the preservation of diplomatic relations in the Horn of Africa.