Climate Change and Natural Disaster–induced Displacement in South Asia: Exploring the Possibilities of Learning from Nansen-like Initiatives by Leveraging BIMSTEC

Abstract

The causal linkage between climate change, natural disasters and displacement has been strongly evidenced by data published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, International Organisation on Migration and the UNHCR. Climate change, while often not the direct driver of displacement and migration, can worsen existing vulnerabilities, in turn exacerbating the issue. It is precisely this facet that makes it difficult to identify such cases, especially given the lack of focused studies in this regard in South Asia. The authors in this piece explore the governance of such climate change–induced and natural disaster–induced displacement in South Asia. The region consists of some of the most vulnerable areas to climate change, with deltaic regions and shorelines already witnessing reduced land area, driving displacement, both internal and cross-border. In spite of that, in South Asia, there exists a legal and policy gap in regard to addressing the protective concerns of such a vulnerable population. Most of the countries in the region have adopted ad hoc administrative approaches to deal with the issue, which has been criticized for the lack of uniformity in application or disregard for international norms and soft law frameworks that govern this sector. On the other hand, a promising new regional cooperation has emerged in the form of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), and addressing climate change has featured heavily on its agenda already. Leaning on state-led regional initiatives like the Nansen Initiative, BIMSTEC could potentially develop a home-grown collaborative venture geared towards consultative processes and incorporating soft law normative obligations, significantly contributing to protection measures in this regard. The authors argue that, in light of such unstructured approaches by South Asian states, leveraging BIMSTEC to yield such approaches may contribute heavily to collaboratively curating climate change and disaster displacement governance regimes.