32m West Africans Risk Displacement By 2050 Over Climate Change – ECOWAS
By Victor Idajili
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has warned that about 32 million people in the sub-region could be displaced by 2050 as a result of climate change.
The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Gen. Birame Diop, gave the warning on Tuesday in Accra, Ghana, at the Second 2026 Parliamentary Seminar of the ECOWAS Parliament.
The seminar, with the theme “Climate Change as a Driver of Environmental Degradation, Population Displacement and Rising Insecurity,” was convened to examine the nexus between climate change, displacement and insecurity in the region.
Diop, who was represented by the Commissioner for Human Development and Social Affairs, Prof. Nassirou Bako-Arifari, said World Bank projections show that women and children would make up about 80 percent of those at risk.
He said climate financing remains a major bottleneck, noting that West Africa needs about $294 billion to address the climate crisis. To mobilise funds, he disclosed that ECOWAS has since 2024 been working to establish a regional carbon market platform under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
According to him, climate-related disasters displaced about two million people in West Africa in 2024 alone, while flooding affected over seven million others, destroying homes, roads, schools, health facilities and farmlands.
He added that between 2025 and 2026, more than 12 million people were internally displaced across West and Central Africa due to a combination of climate change, insecurity and other vulnerabilities.
Diop called for a coordinated regional approach to building climate resilience, rather than fragmented national responses.
“Climate change is not simply an environmental issue. It is a development issue, a humanitarian issue, a peace and security issue, and ultimately an issue of human survival and regional stability,” he said.
He urged ECOWAS parliamentarians to enact climate-responsive laws, push for increased climate financing, strengthen early warning systems, and promote sustainable management of land, water and forest resources, with emphasis on protecting women and youths who are most vulnerable.
