Climate change and water scarcity will force 143 million to more than 216 million people to migrate internally by 2050, according to a new report by the World Bank.
In North African countries like Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and Algeria, about 19.3 million people will be forced to change their place of residence due to climate issues.
In the worst-case scenario, nearly 52 percent of all internal migrants in Morocco could be climate migrants.
“In the more climate-friendly scenario, climate migrants would make up about 10 percent of all internal migrants”, states the World Bank’s report.
Tangier, Souss-Massa, and especially the regions of Agadir, Essaouira and the areas surrounding Fez are expected to be affected by these climatic changes causing internal migration problems.
For cities and rural areas, there is an urgent need to build resilience to water changes. People-centered investments in financial safety nets, movable assets such as education, water supply and sanitation, health care, and safe housing for poor migrants can help protect people from severe water-related shocks, the report says.
Seventeen countries of the world, in which 25 percent of the world’s population lives, are already suffering from severe water stress. However, developing countries struggle the most with water-related challenges, for more than 85 percent of the population affected by rainfall fluctuations live in low or middle-income countries.
“This does not mean that the world is witnessing waves of poor water refugees migrating to escape drought; in fact, it is often the poorest people who lack the means to migrate, even if doing so may improve their livelihoods and future prospects.” explained the World Bank experts.
The experts added: “It is essential to work to protect people, livelihoods and resources. A wide range of complementary policies can turn water crises into opportunities to be exploited. Policy makers, particularly in conflict-affected regions such as the Middle East and North Africa, will have to make a trade-off between uncoordinated short-term measures needed to meet immediate water needs, and the long-term measures needed to address the structural issues associated with water.”
The report found that the population of poor countries is four times less likely to be displaced than the population of middle-income countries.
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