New UNHCR Report: On the Frontlines of Climate Change, Conflict and Forced Displacement

A new UNHCR report is officially released today, in collaboration with 13 expert organizations, research institutions and refugee-led groups, documents how climate change is forcing displacement around the globe. You may access the report here. Here is more on the release:

“According to the report – No Escape: On the Frontlines of Climate Change, Conflict and Forced Displacement – by 2040 the number of countries facing extreme climate-related hazards is expected to rise from 3 to 65, the vast majority of which host displaced people. Similarly, most refugee settlements and camps are projected to experience twice as many days of dangerous heat by 2050.

For example, the devastating conflict in Sudan has forced millions of people to flee, including 700,000 who have crossed into Chad, which has hosted refugees for decades and yet is one of the countries most exposed to climate change. At the same time, many who fled the fighting but remained in Sudan are at risk of further displacement because of severe flooding that has blighted the country.

Similarly, 72 per cent of Myanmar’s refugees have sought safety in Bangladesh, where natural hazards such as cyclones and flooding, are classified as extreme.

The report also highlights that climate financing is failing to reach refugees, host communities and others in fragile and war-torn countries, so their ability to adapt to the effects of climate change is fast deteriorating.

At present, extremely fragile states receive only around US$ 2 per person in annual adaptation funding, an astounding shortfall when compared to $161 per person in non-fragile states. When investment does reach fragile states, more than 90 per cent goes towards capital cities, while other places rarely benefit.”

IE