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Are Water Shortages Driving Migration? Researchers Dispel Myths

Reuters

   STOCKHOLM - Water scarcity is one factor driving millions of people
   from their homes each year but is often not the only reason why they
   move, researchers told an international conference on Tuesday.

   In most cases, other economic and social problems like conflict,
   corruption or a lack of jobs contribute to the decision to leave, they
   said.

   They warned against over-simplifying the links between water and
   migration, and said many of those who do move - at least partly because
   of water-related pressures such as floods, droughts and pollution - may
   not travel far.

   "International migration is very expensive and very risky and it lies
   beyond the reach of many of the poorest people who are most vulnerable
   to water security and drought," said Guy Jobbins of the London-based
   Overseas Development Institute.

   Those who suffer water-related shocks to their livelihoods - losing
   animals or crops - "are less likely to have the funds to start again in
   South Africa or France", he told an audience at World Water Week in
   Stockholm.

   Conversely, there was some evidence to suggest that people who have
   better access to secure, affordable water are more likely to have
   enough financial resources to migrate, he added.

   Although much is made of international migration, most movement related
   to water is inside countries, often from one rural place to another,
   said Sasha Koo-Oshima, deputy director of land and water at the U.N.
   Food and Agriculture Organization.

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