BY GEORGINA KEKEA
CLIMATE change will likely increase the rate of migration in the coming decades.
Speaking in the workshop on a proposed draft resettlement policy, Dr Tammy Tabe of the University of the South Pacific (USP) said such movements can be positive if it is well planned and documented.
Ms Tabe says such movement do not always have negative outcomes for those moving and those who are receiving.
She said if well planned and coordinated, migration will increase the capacity of people and communities to adapt to climate change.
“Movements should be voluntary. Involuntary migration or forced relocation should be the last resort,” she said in her presentation.
She said over the years, Solomon Islanders have encountered movement of some sort.
This includes movement because of natural disasters such as earthquake, floods, tsunami and landslide. Man-made relocation includes the ethnic tension.
Tabe said without proper planning and preparation, migration can displace people and communities.
“It can lead to conflict and instability within clans, between communities and within the country,” Tabe said.
She said from experience, government should have a ‘resettlement policy’ to safeguard future citizens of the country.
