IOM Vision
IOM partners with the government at national and sub-national levels to respond to complex emergencies, reduce and mitigate the impacts of disaster displacement, and build peace. IOM works with partners and local communities to reduce exposure to natural hazards, build resilience and facilitate climate change adaptation through community-based planning interventions, as well as strengthening trust, contributing to shared peace, security, equality, justice and social cohesion goals.
Context analysis
Papua New Guinea (PNG) is prone to multiple natural hazards, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, cyclones, flooding, rising sea levels and droughts, that lead to displacement and economic and human losses yearly. In 2023, the country went through multi-layered disasters caused by election-related violence, medium to major-scale earthquakes, flooding and volcanic eruptions.
Natural hazards have significant impacts. Earthquakes hit the Highlands region in September 2022, damaging infrastructure. Between July and November 2023, volcanic eruptions of Mount Bagana and Mount Ulawun, displaced thousands of people in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, and West New Britain and East New Britain provinces. In Autonomous Region of Bougainville, a total, 3,303 displaced individuals from 724 households (HHs) were identified at Wakunai (1,500 individuals from 315 HHs) and Piva station (1,803 individuals from 409 HHs) care centres and while in November 2023, a total of 17,109 people were displaced due to the Mt Ulawun volcano eruption in different sites in West New Britain and East New Britain provinces.
A total of 3.09 million people or 585,314 households are exposed to the El Niño hazard, including 1.24 million vulnerable people (United Nations in Papua New Guinea, 2022). Many parts of the country are experiencing an exceptionally extended dry spell due to La Niña. South Bougainville, East New Britain, and northern parts of New Ireland provinces are in critical drought conditions and are forecasted to experience below-average rainfall in the coming months, a situation further exacerbated by climate change (Papua New Guinea National Weather Service, 2022).
On 10 January 2024, violence erupted in Port Moresby, the capital city of Papua New Guinea. The unrest began when a group comprising of uniformed forces protested due to unexplained tax deductions from their salaries. The unrest spread rapidly to other provinces including the Eastern Highlands leading to the destruction of businesses. Shops were looted, and buildings were set on fire, exacerbated by the absence of police. The exact number of casualties remains unconfirmed, but there were reports of multiple deaths and dozens of people injured. Emergency services struggled to cope with the magnitude of the disturbance. In response to the escalating situation, the government declared a 14-day state of emergency in the capital, Port Moresby.
The spill over of the PNG National General Election (2022) violence also remains significant across the Highlands region of the country, especially in Enga and Hela provinces. The violence started in May 2022 and has continued. In some places, the violence has resurfaced from long-standing issues, including land disputes, retribution, and unsettled disputes between clans, who are using the instability around elections to re-ignite old tensions. The election-related violence and associated tribal conflicts triggered the displacement of more than 30,000 people according to IOM's Displacement Tracking Matrix.
The high rates of violence against women and girls in Papua New Guinea persist as a significant challenge. Research indicates that at least 60 percent of women in the country have endured physical and/or sexual violence from intimate partners, a figure twice the global average. Furthermore, instances of violence linked to accusations of sorcery against older women seem to be increasing. A 2021 report by the International Finance Corporation highlighted that Papua New Guinea businesses suffer substantial losses, averaging 10 days per staff member annually, due to the repercussions of family and sexual violence.