Mirroring increased interest in the media and even among the public at large, the link between climate change and forced migration received some high-profile attention during September’s Africa Climate Week and Africa Climate Summit, which ran concurrently in Nairobi in early September.

UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, “reaffirm[ed] its dedication to climate action as a central element of its mission to address displacement and provide protection to vulnerable populations in Africa.” A pre-summit official visit to Dadaab refugee camp demonstrated the impact of climate change on both refugees and the communities that host them.

The agency noted in particular the severe drought in the Horn of Africa, which is affecting millions of displaced people and local communities in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia. The varied and dramatic impacts of this drought in the Kenyan context - such as livelihood loss, water scarcity, food insecurity, and forced migration - are laid out in our recent report.

Looking ahead to COP28, now less than two months away, UNHCR is working with various stakeholders to “forge a future where the impact of climate-related events on displacement is met with resilience, protection and solutions.” 

At the widely-attended conference, there were also some notable government announcements. For example, US Special Envoy for Climate John Kerry announced a 4 million USD contribution to the IOM in “support of migrants and refugees in Kenya”. The program is meant to help migrants, refugees, and Kenyan hosts build resilience in the face of climate hazards in Garissa and Turkana counties via livelihood support, improved data, and humanitarian tools for “climate-displaced populations”. 

Our above report, for which we visited several different locations in Turkana County, highlights how urgently needed such support is as well as the importance of making sure it is sustainable in the long-term. For example, drought and water scarcity in Lorengippi are forcing many pastoralists to move, sometimes resulting in conflict with those already residing in destination areas. In Kakuma Refugee Camp, many new arrivals are fleeing the impacts of climate change in their home countries. One South Sudanese refugee who lives there told us during our visit that in a sense it is better to be fleeing conflict than climate change because “There is nowhere to hide from climate change.”

Perhaps the most notable development of the week was the signing of the Kampala Ministerial Declaration on Migration, Environment and Climate Change (KDMECC-AFRICA). 48 African nations have now agreed to adopt the declaration, which was first put forth in July 2022 and at the time signed by 15 states. The expanded consensus around the declaration represents a major milestone in addressing displacement as a result of climate change in the most climate-vulnerable continent in the world. Parties to the declaration commit to using a “human rights-based approach in the design and implementation of policies relating to the climate change-migration nexus.” 

The declaration also asks states to “implement treaties, pacts, protocols and regulations on free movement of people, labour mobility and transhumance”. This is a particularly encouraging element, as it speaks to the need for countries to adopt existing instruments that can be of use in addressing the complex issues of climate displacement. As we highlighted in our report, there are still a number of countries, including Kenya, that need to fully adopt the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa, known as the Kampala Convention. This instrument, the world’s only legally-binding regional instrument on internal displacement, could be a useful model to other regions, especially if even more governments sign on.

As countries throughout the African continent continue to experience the negative effects of climate change, the apparent willingness of governments and other stakeholders to build consensus and take collective action is a promising sign, but it is only a beginning. Just as financial support, like the new US contribution, must continue beyond short-term programming, national and regional action within the continent must understand that climate migration will take sustained commitment and political will to address in a way that upholds human rights and provides meaningful protection.