Youth on the Move: Harnessing Migration for Africa’s Climate Resilience and Development Executive Summary This brief examines the impact of climate change on migration in Africa, highlighting the role of young people in enhancing climate resilience and development. As climate change increasingly influences migration patterns on the continent, this brief argues that migration can be a vital adaptation strategy rather than a challenge, if meaningful­ly managed. It maintains that young people, either on the move or in place, can enhance local resilience through innovative solutions, and provide diverse skills and talents to both communities and countries. This brief presents three key recommendations, including integrating migra­tion into National Adaptation Plans(NAPs), enabling youth ecosystem for innovation, and strengthening whole-of-soci­ety approach to adaptation; In essence, the brief emphasiz­es the crucial role of migration in enabling Africa’s climate resilience priorities, focusing on the agency of African youth, who are significantly impacted by climate mobility yet well-positioned to drive the continent’s green transition and advance its climate adaptation and development agenda. 1. Introduction From time immemorial, migration has been an integral part of people’s lives in Africa. From pastoralists seeking green pasturelands to merchant trade routes, from young people pursuing knowledge to locals escaping conflicts and disasters; migration is both a response and an adaptation strategy to a wide range of socio-economic challenges in Africa, including climate change. 1 In recent times, climate stressors are increasingly shaping human mobility patterns on the continent, causing forced displacement and influencing people’s migration decisions. Climate risks are particularly posing multiple threats to people’s socio-economic well-being and shaping popula­tion distribution both within and across national bounda­ries. The number of internal displacements triggered by cli­mate-related disasters has risen by nearly six fold across the continent over the last 15 years, from 1.1 million in 2009 to 6.3 million in 2023. 2 Floods triggered more than three-quarters of Africa’s disaster displacements, and even with notable data gaps, droughts account for another 11 per 1  Kira Vinke et al.,“Migration as Adaptation?” Migration Studies 8, no. 4. December 1, 2020. 626–34, https://doi.org/10.1093/migration/mnaa029. 2  Internal Displacement Monitoring Center(IDMC). Internal Displacement in Africa an Overview of Trends and Developments(2009-2023).2024. https://doi.org/10.55363/idmc.vyil2669 Harnessing Migration for Africa’s Climate Resilience and Development 1