Climate Migration, Development and Sustainability in the Global South: A Critical Assessment

The relationship between climate change and migration remains widely debated, particularly regarding the extent to which environmental factors directly drive mobility. While climate-related stressors such as droughts, floods, and environmental degradation can disrupt livelihoods, migration decisions are rarely shaped by environmental factors alone. This study argues that climate change is often overstated as a primary driver of migration and may function instead as a secondary explanatory frame for mobility shaped by deeper socioeconomic and institutional constraints. Focusing on environmentally vulnerable regions of the Global South, this study examines the interplay between ecological stressors, structural inequalities, governance frameworks, and development conditions in shaping migration outcomes. It adopts a sustainability-oriented perspective to highlight how migration is embedded within broader adaptive and developmental processes rather than operating as a direct response to environmental change. The analysis demonstrates that effective policy responses must move beyond climate-deterministic narratives and instead adopt integrated approaches that combine environmental management, socioeconomic development, and migration governance. Strengthening adaptive capacity, improving institutional resilience, and promoting inclusive urban and rural development are identified as key policy priorities. By linking climate-related migration to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—notably SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG 13 (Climate Action)—the study contributes to a more holistic understanding of mobility in the context of environmental change. Overall, it calls for a re-evaluation of climate–migration dynamics in the Global South, emphasizing sustainable and context-sensitive governance approaches that reflect the complexity of migration processes.