National and regional responses to climate
mobilities in the Pacific region

Naoyuki Okano, Policy Researcher, Adaptation and Water Area

Human mobilities as a security issue•

Since the debates on environmental refugees in 1970s to the recent debates on climate refugees,
human mobilities induced by environmental factors has been one of the central topic in security
discourses related to environmental problems. While there is a challenge in estimation, the World Bank
estimates 216 million people could move within their own countries due to slow-onset climatechange impacts by 2050.

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Plurality in conceptualizing migration and security••••

There is a plurality in the relevant conception ofmigration and security.
National security: Some see it as a national security issuecaused by the increasing number of migrants. This view
typically discusses sovereignty, border controls, andimmigration policies.
Human security: However for many, it is a matter ofsurvival/human security issues caused by extreme as well
as slow-onset climate impacts. Policy measures such asplanned relocation are discussed from this viewpoint.
International security: There is a growing recognition ofthis issue as one of international security. However,human mobilities are also trapped by global
governance—the polycentricity of the forums thatgovern it is another issue that makes it complicated.

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Purpose, research questions, methods
Purpose• Our research group aims to provide policy recommendations on how to better prepare
for climate mobilities through national, bilateral, and regional approaches.
• (Our research makes inputs to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan.)
Research questions•What is the current shape of multi-level governance of climate-induced migration?
What are the dominant ideas behind the governance landscape, and what are thekey gaps?
•(not in this presentation) What are the national and regional experiences of climateinduced migration, and what are the policy approaches to deal with it? We take casestudies in Bangladesh and Fiji.
Method•We conduct a desktop review of relevant legal and policy documents•We interview policy-makers and relevant stakeholders to understand the backgroundof such policy instruments
4Conceptual understanding: drivers behind migration and non-migration• This multifaceted nature ofmigration makes policy
approaches challenging.
• Furthermore, the issue ofclimate-induced migration ismarked by the absence of
unifiedgovernancearchitecture

Source: Black et al. 2011

5Mapping of policy approaches (excerpt)
SecuritylayersScience and Policy Interface

Laws/Norms/Policies

Projects/Activities

International security

IOM’s Global Migration Data Analysis
Centre
IDMC’s Global Report on Internal
Displacement
WB’s Groundswell Report

Geneva Convention Relating to the Statusof Refugees (1951)
Guiding Principles on Internal
Displacement (1998)
The New York Declaration for Refugees
and Migrant (2016)
Global Compacts on Migration (2018) andRefugees (2018)
UNSG’s Action Agenda on Internal
Displacement (2022)

IOM appointment of a new special
envoy for migration and climate action
UNHCR strategic framework andappointed a special advisor on climate
action in 2021
UNFCCC, Task Force on Displacement
Platform on Disaster Displacement
IFRC, Planned Relocation in theContext of Disasters and Climate
Change, 2022

Regional
security

UNESCAP Asia-Pacific Risk &Resilience Portal 2.0

Boe Declaration on Regional Security(Pacific)
Pacific Regional Framework on Climate
Mobility (2023)
Australia-Tuvalu Climate and Migration
Agreement (2023)

IOM, Enhancing Protection andEmpowerment of Migrants andCommunities Affected by Climate
Change and Disasters in the PacificRegion (PCCMHS), (2019-2021)

Nationalsecurity

National Adaptation Planning
Process

US White Paper on Climate Refugees
Planned relocation guidelines in Fiji
Standard Operating Procedures for Planned
Relocation in the Republic of Fiji

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International governance:
emerging coordination by the UNFCCC regime?
•Task Force on Displacement (TFD)
established 2015 is in charge ofdeveloping “recommendations for
integrated approaches to avert, minimize
and address displacement related to theadverse impacts of climate change”(Decision 1. CP21). The Executive
Committee of the Warsaw International
Mechanism for Loss and Damage (WIMExcom) is entrusted by the COP tooperationalize it.

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Given limited resources and capacities,
roles and functions of TFD: setting theagenda, fostering common awareness,and functioning as a platform forcollaboration.

Approach of the task force on displacement7Regional approaches in the Pacific
Boe Declaration on Regional Security, PIF 2018
“We reaffirm that climate change remains the single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security
and wellbeing of the peoples of the Pacific and our commitment to progress the implementationof the Paris Agreement;”

Pacific Regional Framework on Climate Mobility, PIF 2023•

Commitments to address different forms of migration, including:• Planned relocations• Migration• Displacement (Evacuations, Internal Displacement, and Cross-border Displacement)• Stranded migration•

According to PIF, the key functions of these documents are:(1)enhanced coordination among Pacific countries and(2)strengthened Pacific’s voice to the international community8

National policies in Fiji•

Interviews in Fiji took place in March 2024 (we talked to Climate
Change Division, PIF, GIZ, UNDP, IOM, and civil societyorganizations, among others).

•Climate Change Act 2021 – “The Minister, with the assistance of
the Fijian Taskforce on Relocation and Displacement, must
operationalize the Fijian Planned Relocation Guidelines throughdeveloping standard operating procedures…”•Planned relocation is regarded as a last-resort measure in Pacificislands.

•Key functions of these policy instruments are (1) to stabilize theprocess of relocation and prevent unwanted migration, and (2) toprovide higher predictability for donor organizations that those
relocations are safe to fund.

•Remaining gaps include limited funding and capacity,
coordination between DRR and CC divisions, monitoring ofplanned relocations.

9Tentative summary and way forward•

Currently, no international organization has a clear institutional
mandate to cover climate-induced mobilities. Arguably, the UNFCCC
process plays a role in coordinating responses to climate-inducedmobilities.

•Many relevant stakeholders point out that the key remaining gaps area lack of finance and resources. In the context of Fiji, policy
instruments are almost ready, and they need to be implemented.

•However, they see difficulty in accessing international support, andfurther analysis of this gap is needed for the multi-levelgovernance to better function.

•We also observe that many regional and national policy instruments
have dual functions: one addresses national policy gaps, and theother interacts with international governance.

•Also, apart from the multi-level governance perspective, earlyexperience in Fiji (and Pacific countries) on planned relocations
could be good lessons for other countries/regions.
Vunidogoloa village, Fiji
photos by the author

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