The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has warned that the combined effects of climate change, environmental degradation and insecurity could push the number of internally displaced people in the region to nearly 32 million by 2050.
The warning was issued at the Second 2026 Parliamentary Seminar of the ECOWAS Parliament in Accra, Ghana, where lawmakers are examining the growing links between climate change, population displacement and insecurity across West Africa.
Representing the President of the ECOWAS Commission, General Birame Diop, the Commissioner for Human Development and Social Affairs, Professor Nassirou Bako-Arifari, said the region was already experiencing the devastating consequences of climate-related disasters.
According to him, more than two million people were displaced in West Africa in 2024 as a result of natural disasters linked to climate change, while more than seven million people were affected by flooding during the same period.
He said the disasters destroyed homes, roads, schools, health facilities, farms and other critical infrastructure, further worsening existing humanitarian and economic vulnerabilities.
The ECOWAS Commission’s presentation also stated that the combined effects of climate change, insecurity and other vulnerabilities resulted in more than 12 million internally displaced people across West and Central Africa between 2025 and 2026, with women and children accounting for about 80 per cent of the affected population.
Bako-Arifari said the worsening situation required governments to treat climate change as a security and development challenge rather than merely an environmental issue.
“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 cited World Bank projections that the number of internally displaced people in the sub-region could reach nearly 32 million by 2050, largely due to the combined effects of climate change.
The ECOWAS official called on member states to move away from fragmented responses and adopt a coordinated regional approach to climate resilience and human security.
“We must be proactive and invest in resilience before crises occur,” he said, stressing the need to protect ecosystems, create sustainable livelihoods and address grievances before they escalate into conflicts.
The Commission also highlighted the financial burden of tackling the climate crisis, estimating that the region would require $294 billion in climate financing.
It disclosed that ECOWAS had, since 2024, been working towards establishing a regional carbon market platform under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement as part of efforts to attract investment and mobilise resources for climate action.
The regional body urged parliamentarians to strengthen climate-responsive legislation and oversight, prioritise climate financing, and improve early-warning and early-action mechanisms to enable governments and communities to respond to climate-related emergencies before they develop into humanitarian crises.
It also called for the sustainable management of land, water, forests and fisheries, warning that environmental degradation could intensify competition for resources, displacement and insecurity.
The ECOWAS Commission further urged member states to place young people and women at the centre of climate-resilience efforts, describing them as innovators, entrepreneurs, community leaders and agents of resilience.
The parliamentary seminar is being held under the theme, “Climate Change as a Driver of Environmental Degradation, Population Displacement and Rising Insecurity in the ECOWAS Region.”
The Second 2026 Extraordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament will also consider the institution’s 2027 budget and activity programme.