Rights away from home: Climate-induced displacement of indigenous peoples and the extraterritorial application of the Kampala Convention

Abstract

Existing accounts of the relationship between human rights and climate change are not explicit regarding the link between climate change and the displacement of indigenous peoples and its implications for their rights in Africa. Even if a link exists, legal redress is problematic in that an extraterritorial conduct or omission of a state within and outside Africa may feature in climate-induced displacement. Little is known on the way forward to address this challenge. The article demonstrates how climate change is linked to the displacement of indigenous peoples and how their rights are threatened in Africa. Underscoring the extraterritorial nature of activities underlying their displacement, the article examines the basis of the Kampala Convention and the way it may be applied extraterritorially to enhance the protection of indigenous peoples facing climate-induced displacement and the threat to key rights in Africa.