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Subregional Office for the Pacific

Climate Action and Resources Management

Pacific Climate Change Migration and Human Security (PCCM-HS) Programme 2019 - 2021

Following the 2013-2016 Pacific Climate Change and Migration (PCCM) Project, the Pacific Climate Change Migration and Human Security (PCCM-HS) Programme was developed for the period from 2019 to 2021 to continue and maximize the ongoing effort to address climate change-related mobility in the Pacific. The Programme is being implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) – lead agency, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS), and Platform on Disaster Displacement (PDD).

As part of the PCCM-HS programme, ESCAP hosted six Regional Policy Dialogue webinars from September to November 2020 to facilitate policy discussions with the following objectives:

  • Examine how climate change and disasters affect mobility trends in the Pacific Islands;
  • Examine the challenges and opportunities to enhance protection of people migrating in relation to climate change;
  • Discuss relevant initiatives at the global, regional and national levels and outline options for a Pacific regional approach.

Through the Policy Dialogue, representatives from twelve Pacific Island Countries and key stakeholders explored the complexities and challenges of climate change-related migration, displacement and planned relocation. The Dialogue highlighted the need to develop legal and policy frameworks to protect the rights and dignity of all people as well as the importance of national realities to guide the regional response. Recognizing the importance of involving a diverse range of stakeholders, ESCAP will host a second Dialogue series in 2021 to guide and review the development of a regional approach and associated outcome documents on climate change-related displacement, migration and planned relocation.

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Pacific Climate Change and Migration (PCCM) Project 2016 – 2019

The Pacific Climate Change and Migration (PCCM) Project, entitled ‘Enhancing the Capacity of Pacific Island Countries to Manage the Impacts of Climate Change on Migration’, is a three year project (2013-2016) funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The vision of the project is to:

  • To increase protection of individuals and communities that are vulnerable to climate change displacement and migration through targeted national and regional policies; and
  • To increase labour mobility opportunities for Pacific Islanders, through well-managed labour migration schemes.

The Project covers the Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Republic of Marshall Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. In the ‘target countries’ of Kiribati, Tuvalu and Nauru the Project will have national actions aimed at institutional strengthening through developing migration indicators and sharing of information on labour migration; gathering data on community attitudes to climate change induced migration; assisting with the development of climate change responses and national action strategies to mitigate the risk of displacement; and enhancing national capacity to effectively participate in regional, bilateral and global schemes on labour migration.