ABSTRACT
A migration issue Environmental changes pose new challenges for pastoralist nomadic peoples, forcing certain groups to deviate from their traditional routes, and even to sometimes cross borders unawares, thereby engaging in irregular migration. The inability to pursue their traditional way of life as a result of climate change also leads to cultural, social, economic and political changes for many of these communities, which subsequently fi nd
themselves in situations of ‘forced displacement’. This situation is paradoxical as for nomads it manifests itself through non-movement: the end of traditional mobility and economic and social marginalization sometimes followed by an exodus towards urban areas. This situation presents a number of challenges, in terms of both access to food, water and healthcare, and of the necessary measures to take to ensure these populations’ access to education and employment, along with local development and urban planning pertaining to their settlement. In Kenya, an infl ux of refugees from neighbouring countries mired in confl ict has been added to the ongoing disruption of traditional migration. The refugees are placing great strain on host communities, which are themselves already victims of environmental stress, a situation which in turn is a source of confl ict. Special programmes have been put in place, combining environmental action aiming to alleviate the effects of climate change with migration policy action helping traditional mobility to subsist, but this kind of initiative remains all too rare.
