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Amnesty International reported Wednesday that climate-driven drought is forcing thousands of Angolans, primarily women and children, into neighbouring Namibia, where they face severe living conditions and forcible deportation.
Worsened by El Niño, recurring droughts across southern Angola have devastated rain-fed agriculture and created severe food insecurity for millions.
Displaced Angolans now reside in overcrowded, makeshift shelters made of branches and plastic, constantly fearing arrest by Namibian authorities.
Namibia has already deported over 1,000 undocumented Angolans this year, including a round-up of roughly 40 women and children transported to the border in June 2025.
Amnesty International highlighted that Namibian officials have forcibly returned Angolan children without providing public information on safeguard protocols or human rights protections.
Amnesty Regional Director Tigere Chagutah labelled the ongoing displacement a “human rights crisis” and called on Namibian authorities to grant refugees proper documentation and access to basic human rights.
Despite being one of Africa’s top producers of crude oil and diamonds, Angola sees nearly a third of its population living below the poverty line, with 11.1 million citizens relying on rain-fed livelihoods.
As Southern Africa prepares for hotter and drier conditions driven by El Niño, human rights organisations fear that worsening heatwaves and water shortages will escalate regional cross-border displacement even further.
