HomeAsiaThe future of climate migration? Tuvalu’s people seek a new home in...
Asia

The future of climate migration? Tuvalu’s people seek a new home in Australia

PressNewsAgency
By PressNewsAgency

More than 3,000 Tuvaluans have applied for a landmark climate visa to move to Australia, as rising seas threaten to engulf vulnerable areas of the South Pacific island.

Australia last week opened a new visa category specially set aside for adult citizens of Tuvalu following the groundbreaking climate migration pact, Falepili Union, signed in 2023.

About 3,125 Tuvaluans – accounting for nearly a third of the population – had already entered the ballot within four days of its opening, Agence France-Presse reported, citing official data.

Tuvalu is home to 10,643 people, according to 2022 census figures.

Australia is offering visas to 280 Tuvaluans annually, with the ballot for the 2025-26 programme year closing on July 18. The visa requires an A$25 (US$16) registration fee.

Water welling from the rocky ground forms a new lake in the centre of Amatuku Islet of Funafuti, Tuvalu. About 3,125 Tuvaluans have applied for a climate visa to live in Australia. Photo: AFP

Canberra has hailed the climate migration pact as “the first agreement of its kind anywhere in the world”.

Source link

Discover more from PressNewsAgency

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

- Advertisment -