Kathmandu [Nepal], October 17 – Climate change could force up to 40.5 million people across South Asia to leave their homes by 2050 as rising seas, floods and drought threaten livelihoods, the UN migration chief has warned calling for greater investment in resilience and technology.
Amy Pope, Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) told AFP during a visit to New Delhi on Friday that climate-related threats were increasingly affecting homes, farmland and people’s ability to earn a living.
“When they can’t produce food, when they can’t feed their livestock it increases the likelihood of displacement” Pope said, adding that moving was often the first form of adaptation available to affected communities.
In the Himalayas she cited Nepal’s August 26 disaster, when a mountain and glacier collapse triggered deadly flooding. The IOM provided humanitarian assistance to those affected.
Pope also highlighted climate change’s role in accelerating urbanisation in India as people seek shelter from rising temperatures in cities. She warned that vulnerable communities across South Asia faced growing risks while global funding for climate adaptation remained insufficient.
“The cost of a humanitarian disaster is in the billions. The cost of investing in some of the resilience measures can be far less” she said.
Artificial intelligence and better data could help governments identify communities at risk before disasters strike. Combining weather forecasts with information about local livelihoods could enable authorities to provide support before people are displaced.
Measures could include improving farming practices, training workers for alternative jobs and relocating communities repeatedly affected by floods or drought.
Pope said India’s investments in early-warning systems, disaster response and technology offered grounds for optimism but international cooperation remained essential.
She also urged governments to expand safe, legal migration routes to meet labour demand and protect workers from trafficking, smuggling and fraudulent overseas job offers.
