Since 2008, an average of 26.4 million people have been displaced due to natural disasters every year. This equates to roughly one person every second. Addressing this issue represents a huge challenge for all concerned, and has led policymakers to push for a concerted, comprehensive effort involving humanitarian assistance, development, climate change, and disaster risk reduction sectors to work in unison. To help equip governments, local authorities, civil society organisations, and international and regional institutions with relevant evidence on disaster-related displacement, the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) has produced this report. It provides a detailed overview of the latest figures, patterns, and trends on disaster-related displacement around the world, with a special focus on the major events that occurred since the last IDMC report.
The report opens by conceptualising displacement in the context of disasters, discussing subjects such as the: slow versus rapid onset disasters; continuum from voluntary to forced migration; displacement risk and ways to reduce it; and patterns of movement associated with disaster-related displacement. Next, the authors examine the global picture, in terms of scale, patterns, and trends. The following are among the key findings:
* More than 19.3 million people were displaced by disasters in 100 countries in 2014.
* Weather-related hazards accounted for 17.5 million of those displaced, with the largest contributing factor being floods.
* Climate change is expected to make climate-related displacement worse, as extreme weather events become more intense and frequent.
* After adjusting for population growth, it is estimated that people are 60% more likely to be displaced by disasters today than four decades ago.
* 1998 was a peak year for disaster-related displacement, which was correlated with the strongest iteration of El Nino as yet recorded.
* Unplanned urban growth is increasing the number of people exposed and vulnerable to disasters.
* While people in low-income countries are disproportionately more vulnerable to disaster risk, high income countries are not immune; extreme hazards pose a risk wherever they strike, while inequality disproportionately exposes poor and marginalised segments of society.
The geographical distribution of displacement by region and by country are then discussed, and the most significant events of 2014 analysed. These include the earthquake and tsunami in Chile, conflict and flooding in Bosnia and Herzagovina, and the ongoing plight of people in China, India, and the Phillipines. These last three countries have suffered the highest disaster-related displacement levels across the 2008-2014 period, and have experienced 15 of the largest 20 such events in 2014 alone, most of which were storm and flood related. A special focus in also placed on the impacts felt by low-lying island states.
The report then moves its focus to the issue of protracted displacement, where displaced populations find themselves trapped in what was meant to be temporary displacement, often for years after the disasters strike. The authors challenge such assumptions as disaster-related displacement being only temporary, or a problem for developing countries alone, providing evidence to the contrary. Examples include the Manam islanders still displaced ten years after a volcanic eruption forced them to leave their homes, and the repeated and protracted displacement of Bangladeshis six years after cyclone Aila. Finally, the report positions its findings in the context of the post-2015 development agenda, arguing that disaster-related displacement should be central to any negotiations concerning development, humanitarianism, and climate change.
In the conclusion to the report, the authors outline key messages and findings:
* Between the Sustainable Development Goals, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, action on climate change under the UNFCCC, and preparatory work for the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit, there has never been a better time to address displacement associated with disasters.
* A comprehensive approach to displacement is needed to help forge strong links and continuities between initiatives, as well as to support the implementation of global and national commitments.
* Narrow conceptions of displacement as primarily being humanitarian in nature, or related to a specific event, must be replaced by considerations of its complex and lasting character.
* The increasing number of people at risk of protracted displacement underscores the need to include these groups in sustainable and inclusive development initiatives and programmes.
* Improved monitoring and data on displacement is required to measure the achievement of national and global policy targets concerning sustainable development, disaster risk reduction, and climate change adaptation.
* A common framework for collecting, interpreting, and comparing data should be established between governments and international partners, so that resources and targeted responses can accurately prioritise where needs are greatest.
* Special attention should be paid to collecting data disaggregated by age, gender, and specific vulnerabilities, as well as to monitoring the situation of people caught in long-lasting or chronic displacement.