His Excellency the President of the Republic of Uganda General Yoweri Kaguta Museveni officiated at the closing ceremony of the Inter-Ministerial Conference on Migration, Environment and Climate Change in the East and Horn of Africa. The three days High Level Conference was hosted by the Government of Uganda from 27th to 29th July, 2022 at Speke Resort Munyonyo, Kampala.
The Theme of the Conference was; “Enhancing cooperation in relation to climate change induced mobility including migration, displacement and planned relocation”.
The Government of the Republic of Uganda, spearheaded by the Ministry of Water and Environment, supported by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Regional Office for East and Horn of Africa and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)’s and East African Development Bank (EADB)’s Regional Collaboration Centre (RCC) based in Uganda, organized a High-level, Regional, Inter-Ministerial Conference on “Migration, Environment and Climate Change in the East and Horn of Africa”.
The Conference was geared towards developing an integrated approach to climate change induced mobility across the region.
The Objectives of the conference were to;
(i) Bring together high-level participants from 12 regional Member States and other African Member States to enhance cooperation in relation to climate change induced human mobility, including migration, displacement and planned relocation.
(ii) Advance understanding on the links between climate change, human mobility and the importance of regional collaboration to ensure effective and accelerated action.
(iii) Explore areas of cooperation in mitigating the adverse effects and taking advantage of
the opportunities of climate change-related mobility.
(iv) Consider how the Migration, Environment and Climate Change nexus can be elevated
through collaborative efforts at global platforms, and in particular at UNFCCC COPs, including through a joint Declaration, towards an action-oriented, forward-looking, common position.
(v) Identify possible areas of strategic intervention by states, RECs, partners and the wider UN family and regional bodies.
During the closing ceremony, a Joint Declaration by States was signed as a landmark for enhancing Regional cooperation in relation to climate change induced human mobility, including migration, displacement and planned relocation. The Declaration amongst other objectives will provide a standpoint from which the 12 States intend to articulate regional priorities with respect to the negotiations planned at COP27, with particular focus on the adverse impact of climate change on human mobility.
The conference was also attended by the President of South Sudan His Excellency Salva Kiir Mayardit. The Conference also brought together relevant Ministers of Environment and the Ministers who manage Migration and their Technical Experts from the 12 countries under the IGAD, EAC and the IOM East and Horn of Africa Regions; Burundi, Djibouti, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania and Uganda and other African Member States.
