Exploring the Environment-Conflict-Migration Nexus in Asia

The report analyzes how climate change acts as a 'threat multiplier' in Asia, compounding existing social, political, and economic vulnerabilities to exacerbate conflict and drive migration. Focusing on Afghanistan, Myanmar, and Bangladesh, it examines how environmental stressors like droughts and floods intersect with ethnic discrimination and political instability. It highlights the specific vulnerabilities of displaced populations, such as the Rohingya and Afghans, who often reside in hazard-prone urban slums or camps. The document argues that national and regional policies frequently omit the climate-conflict-migration nexus and recommends that humanitarian agencies and policy-makers integrate these linkages to build long-term resilience and support safe, regular migration.

• Climate change functions as a 'threat multiplier' in Asia, where it interacts with pre-existing social inequalities, poverty, and political instability to intensify human insecurity and drive both conflict and migration.
• In Afghanistan, conflict and political instability are compounded by severe environmental risks; the country is ranked 17th out of 180 in the Global Climate Risk Index 2021 due to high fatality rates from weather-related events.
• The Rohingya population in Myanmar faces a critical protection gap where systemic marginalization and restrictions on freedom of movement create 'forced immobility,' leaving them unable to migrate to safer areas during climate disasters.
• Bangladesh is the most disaster-prone country in South Asia, ranking seventh globally in the 2021 Global Climate Risk Index, with extreme events like Cyclone Amphan displacing approximately 2.5 million people in 2020.
• Displaced persons and migrants often settle in high-risk urban slums or camps, increasing their exposure to hazards such as flash floods and landslides while facing tensions with host communities over scarce resources.
• Gender and ethnicity significantly shape vulnerability; for example, 52% of Afghan women surveyed by the Mixed Migration Centre cited sexual and gender-based violence as a driver of migration, compared to 22% of men.
• Development and climate projects can inadvertently trigger conflict through 'green grabbing,' where land is confiscated by elites under the guise of mitigation or adaptation, displacing local communities.
• National and regional policy frameworks in Asia generally fail to integrate the nexus of climate, conflict, and migration, often treating migration as a trend to be prevented rather than a potential adaptation strategy.

APA

Vigil, S., Torre, A. R., & Kim, D. (2022). Exploring the Environment-Conflict-Migration Nexus in Asia. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/drc-ro-asia-sei-research-report-exploring-the-environment-conflict-migration-nexus-in-asia-may-2022.pdf

Chicago

Vigil, Sara, Andreea R. Torre, and Dayoon Kim. Exploring the Environment-Conflict-Migration Nexus in Asia. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2022. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/drc-ro-asia-sei-research-report-exploring-the-environment-conflict-migration-nexus-in-asia-may-2022.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Vigil |first1=Sara |last2=Torre |first2=Andreea R. |last3=Kim |first3=Dayoon |title=Exploring the Environment-Conflict-Migration Nexus in Asia |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=March 2022 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/drc-ro-asia-sei-research-report-exploring-the-environment-conflict-migration-nexus-in-asia-may-2022.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{vigil2022exploring, author = {Vigil, Sara and Torre, Andreea R. and Kim, Dayoon}, title = {{Exploring the Environment-Conflict-Migration Nexus in Asia}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/drc-ro-asia-sei-research-report-exploring-the-environment-conflict-migration-nexus-in-asia-may-2022.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }