Author(s)

Abstract

The climate crisis is driving displacement and making life harder for those already forced to flee. Protection and solutions for displaced people are becoming more difficult to achieve as climate change adds to degraded and dangerous conditions in areas of origin and refuge. Millions of refugees, internally displaced and stateless people are living in climate “hotspots”, where they typically lack the resources to adapt to an increasingly inhospitable environment. The East and Horn of Africa and Great Lakes (EHAGL) Region is one of the most climate-vulnerable regions globally and has seen the number of forcibly displaced people in the region almost triple over the past decade.

Forcibly displaced populations often live in areas that are expected to see the most drastic increases in climate hazards by 2030. To address the challenges they face, UNHCR seeks to form a coalition of partners across the humanitarian-development-climate-security nexus, and leverage climate adaptation and resilience investments in support of areas hosting forcibly displaced populations. UNHCR will also strengthen its operations to meet the protection and assistance needs exacerbated by climate emergencies. Much of the work we do in vulnerable humanitarian contexts, ranging from preparedness and response, cash-based assistance, durable shelter, and others, contributes to the climate resilience and adaptive capacities of displaced and host communities, but we need to do more. The key objectives of the 2023-2028 UNHCR EHAGL Region Climate Action Plan, which lists priority action points to better implement existing UNHCR global climate commitments, are the following:

• Through increased legal, policy and normative engagement, states will improve their capacity to consistently provide protection to people fleeing from and living in climate crises. UNHCR will provide legal and policy advice, guidance, and support to national governments, regional economic communities, and other relevant stakeholders, to develop enhanced protection for refugees and other people displaced in the context of disasters and climate change.
• Through expanded partnerships and scaled up financing, displaced populations and their hosts will have increased access to environmentally sustainable resources and services. We are committed to reducing environmental degradation in displacement settings and enhancing the preparedness and resilience of displaced people and host communities. We will continue to advocate for a scale up on adaptation financing and support to climate action in countries and host community areas where displaced people take refuge or hope to safely return to.
• Through inclusion into national plans and systems, forcibly displaced, stateless people and their hosts will have the economic and physical means to prepare for, survive and recover from climate shocks and stresses. UNHCR will advocate for the inclusion of refugees into regional and national climate change related policies and plans and strive to improve their anticipatory and early warning capacities to better prepare for emergencies brought on by climate-related and other natural hazards.

UNHCR will also continue its efforts to function with a significantly reduced carbon footprint and to have the means and systems in place to minimize negative impacts on the environment. We seek to reduce the carbon footprint of our own operations by implementing green solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.