DISASTERS AND CROSS-BORDER DISPLACEMENT IN CENTRAL AMERICA: EMERGING NEEDS, NEW RESPONSES OUTCOME REPORT Nansen Initiative Central America Regional Consultation San José, Costa Rica, 2-4 December 2013 DISASTERS CLIMATE CHANGE AND DISPLACEMENT EVIDENCE FOR ACTION NORWEGIAN NRC REFUGEE COUNCIL ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The consultation was hosted by the Government of Costa Rica, and co-organized by the Nansen Initiative Secretariat and the Coordination Center for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America (CEPREDENAC). The project is funded by the European Union with the support of Norway and Switzerland Federal Department of Foreign Aairs FDFA TABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD BY THE NANSEN INITIATIVE SECRETARIAT ..............................................................................................6 1. OUTCOMES OF THE NANSEN INITIATIVE CENTRAL AMERICAN REGIONAL CONSULTATION .....................................7 1.1 MESSAGE FROM THE GOVERNMENT OF COSTA RICA .................................................................................................7 1.2 CONCLUSIONS: NANSEN INITIATIVE CENTRAL AMERICAN REGIONAL CONSULTATION ..............................................8 Conclusions: Nansen Initiative Regional Consultation, San Jose, Costa Rica 2-4 December 2013 ............................................9 1. Disaster Risk Management: Prevention of and Preparedness for Displacement ..................................................................10 2. Migration and Border Management in Disaster Contexts .................................................................................................... 11 3. Protection during Cross-Border Displacement in Disaster Contexts .................................................................................... 11 4. Durable Solutions for Cross-Border Displacement in Disaster Contexts ..............................................................................12 5. International Coordination and Cooperation for Cross-Border Displacement in Disaster Contexts .......................................12 1.3 CONSIDERATION OF THE CONCLUSIONS BY GOVERNMENT DELEGATIONS AND REPRESENTATIVES OF THE CHAIRMANSHIP OF THE NANSEN INITIATIVE.........................................................13 2. THE TECHNICAL WORKSHOP ................................................................................................................................14 2.1 INTRODUCTORY REMARKS .......................................................................................................................................14 2.1.1 Chairmanship of the Nansen Initiative ............................................................................................................................14 2.1.2 Envoy of the Chairmanship of the Nansen Initiative ........................................................................................................14 2.1.3 Coordination Center for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America (CEPREDENAC) ....................................15 2.1.4 National Risk Prevention and Emergency Commission of Costa Rica (CNE) ....................................................................16 2.2 PRESENTATIONS AND DISCUSSIONS .......................................................................................................................16 2.2.1 Introduction and Structure of the Consultation ..............................................................................................................16 2.2.2 Cross-Border Disaster Displacement in Central America ...............................................................................................17 2.2.3 Case Study: 2010 Earthquake in Haiti ...........................................................................................................................18 2.2.4 Hydro-Meteorological Disasters: Lessons learned regarding human mobility within the humanitarian response ...........19 2.2.5 Slow-Onset Disasters and Environmental Degradation ..................................................................................................20 2.2.6 National Working Groups ...............................................................................................................................................21 2.2.7 Technical Working Groups .............................................................................................................................................22 2.2.8 Follow-up Opportunities in the Context of Existing Regional Mechanisms .....................................................................22 2.3 FACILITATOR’S SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................23 3. ANNEXES .............................................................................................................................................................25 3.1 FINAL AGENDA .........................................................................................................................................................25 3.2 PARTICIPANT LIST ....................................................................................................................................................26 Disasters and Cross-Border Displacement in Central America: Emerging Needs, New Responses 5 FOREWORD BY THE NANSEN INITIATIVE SECRETARIAT This report summarizes the outcomes of the second Nansen Initiative Regional Consultation that took place from 2-4 December 2013 in San Jose, Costa Rica: “Disasters and Cross-Border Displacement in Central America: Emerging Needs, New Responses.” The overall objective of the Central American Consultation was to identify specific challenges facing the Central American region related to cross-border displacement and disasters caused by natural hazards, and to develop con- crete, practical, policy and programmatic outcomes in response to these challenges. The consultation brought together more than 100 representatives from seven Central American countries (Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama), countries beyond the region (Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Norway, Switzerland, and the United States), international organizations, international experts, NGOs, civil society and faith- based organizations. Conclusions from the consultation took the form of an outcome document, which was presented to the Government of Costa Rica by a drafting committee, comprised of delegates from each State as well as representatives from civil society and academia, on the last day of the Consultation. The outcome document contains conclusions and recommenda- tions that require action within five technical areas (Chapter II.2). A summary of the panel discussion can be found in Chapter II.3. Participants at the workshop expressed their commitment to bringing the outcomes of the Regional Consultation to a political level in order to enhance national, regional and international efforts to address the needs and challenges associated with cross-border displacement in the context of natural hazards, as well as the effects of climate change. The Government of Costa Rica hosted the Consultation with operational, practical and logistical support from the Nansen Initiative Secretariat in Geneva and the Coordination Center for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America (CEPREDENAC). The Consultation was supported financially by the European Commission. The Nansen Initiative on disaster-induced cross-border displacement is a state-led, bottom-up consultative process intended to build consensus on the development of a protection agenda addressing the needs of people displaced across international borders in the context of disasters, including those linked to the effects of climate change. To begin the Nansen Initiative process, five regional consultations will be held in the Pacific, Central America, the Horn of Africa, South-East Asia and South Asia over the course of 2013-2014. These consultations will bring together representatives from states, international organizations, NGOs, civil society, think tanks and others key actors working on issues related to displacement and disasters, including those linked to climate change. The outcomes from these consultations will be compiled in preparation for a global consultative meeting planned for 2015, when representatives of interested states and experts from around the world will discuss a potential ‘protec- tion agenda’ for cross-border displacement in the context of disasters. The Initiative does not seek to develop new legal standards, but rather to discuss and build consensus among states on the potential elements of a protection agenda, which may include standards of treatment. Its outcomes may be taken up at domestic, regional and glob- al levels and lead to new laws, soft law instruments or binding agreements. 6 BACKGROUND PAPER 1. OUTCOMES OF THE NANSEN INITIATIVE CENTRAL AMERICAN REGIONAL CONSULTATION 1.1 MESSAGE FROM THE Disasters, whether they are sudden- or slow-onset, have the potential to cause internal and cross-border migra- GOVERNMENT OF COSTA RICA tion and displacement. More and more people have been H.E. Enrique Castillo Barrantes forced to leave their country fleeing disasters and seek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Costa Rica refuge in neighboring countries, and in particular those disasters caused by climate change. Unfortunately, in Participants of the Nansen Initiative