A/77/189
disaster or whose life or integrity is in danger owing to such a cause. In addition, the
holder of such a visa may be granted refugee status following fulfilment of some
requirements established in law. 41
77. In August 2018, the German Advisory Council on Global Change proposed to
develop a “climate passport” that would offer those who are at risk of global warming
the option to gain access to civil rights in safe countries. The climate passport would
allow voluntary and humane migration routes for the population of States whose
territory will likely become uninhabitable owing to climate change. In this case, the
passport would generally apply to the entire population and wou ld not require a direct
application by individual citizens, who therefore would not have to prove to have
been directly affected by the disaster.
78. Ecuador provides humanitarian protection to migrant applicants who can
demonstrate the existence of exceptional reasons of a humanitarian nature as victims
of natural or environmental disasters. The applicant can be granted access to a
humanitarian visa for a period of up to two years. Argentina grants humanitarian visas
to enter the country and has recognized the right to stay for humanitarian reasons to
any persons who, despite not requiring international protection, are temporarily
unable to return to their countries of origin by reason of the prevailing humanitarian
conditions or owing to the consequences caused by environmental disasters. The
residence permit lasts six months, with the possibility of renewal before the date of
expiration.
79. Under the law on migration of Brazil (Law No. 13.445 of 2017), the requirements
for granting a temporary humanitarian visa are established in article 14 (c), providing
that the temporary humanitarian reception visa may be granted to a stateless person or
a national of any country in a situation of serious or imminent institutional instability,
armed conflict, major disaster, environmental catastrophe or serious violation of human
rights or international humanitarian law. Similarly, article 30 (c) of the law provides for
the possibility of granting a residence permit for humanitarian reasons.
80. New Zealand has a framework in place for accepting migrants from Pacific
Island States and for building capacity locally in the affected areas. Under the New
Zealand Pacific Access Category Resident Visa programme, there is a quota for a total
of 650 migrants from Fiji, Kiribati, Tonga and Tuvalu to apply for permanent
residency in New Zealand every year, while a quota of 1,100 is allocated for Samoan
migrants under the Samoan Quota Resident Visa. Australia has prepared a framework
for accepting workers, targeted at citizens of Pacific Island States. The Pacific Labour
Mobility Scheme, launched in July 2018, serves to enhance capacity across the Pacific
region and eliminate labour shortages in Australia by accepting workers from nine
countries including Fiji, Kiribati and Nauru. 42
81. In 2019, Fiji established a trust fund to support the planned relocation of
communities affected by climate change. The 2019–2024 strategy on drought-related
disasters of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development includes efforts to bui ld
resilience and promote migration as an adaptation mechanism. The Coordination
Centre for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America used guidelines on
disaster displacement as a training tool to support its member countries. Some
countries also incorporate migrants and migration into their disaster risk reduction or
preparedness frameworks (see A/76/642).
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Submission by Mexico.
See www.spf.org/opri-intl/global-data/report/perspectives/20200526071205772.pdf.
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