LEGAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE PROTECTION OF CLIMATE CHANGE-FORCEDLY DISPLACED PERSONS IN AFRICA: A POLICY PAPER

Abstract

Climate change is widely recognised as a long-term shift in climate patterns associated with rising temperatures at both global and regional levels. Across Africa, the effects of climate change have become increasingly evident, contributing to biodiversity loss, water scarcity, declining agricultural productivity, loss of lives, and reduced economic growth. Climate-related displacement has also increased significantly. According to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, climate- and disaster-related displacement in Africa rose from approximately 1.1 million in 2009 to 6.3 million in 2023, with projections indicating further increases in the coming decades. The growing link between climate change and forced displacement has received increasing recognition within African human rights institutions. In 2025, the Special Rapporteur on Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Internally Displaced Persons and Migrants in Africa, at the 83rd Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, acknowledged climate change as a contributing factor to forced displacement and called for the development of a common African position on climate-induced displacement grounded in human rights. This call follows an African Union resolution advocating a study into the development of a specific legal framework for the protection of persons forcibly displaced by climate change. Against this background, this paper examines the existing African Union legal framework governing migration and forced displacement and evaluates its adequacy in protecting persons displaced by climate change. Particular attention is given to the 1969 OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa and the 2009 Kampala Convention. The paper identifies significant protection gaps within existing regional and domestic legal and policy frameworks and assesses the extent to which these instruments address the distinctive challenges faced by climate-displaced persons. Adopting a doctrinal and policy-oriented research methodology, the study contributes to the ongoing discourse on climate-induced displacement in Africa and proposes recommendations aimed at informing the development and reform of African Union instruments, regional frameworks, and domestic legislation to strengthen the protection of persons forcibly displaced by climate change.