Without immediate action to combat climate change, rising sea levels, water scarcity and declining crop productivity, the World Bank said in a new report, Monday, that 216 million people could be forced to migrate. within their countries by 2050.

The report, published by CNBC Arabia, added that sub-Saharan African countries alone will constitute 86 million of those migrants, in addition to 19 million in North Africa. . It is expected that there will be 40 million migrants in South Asia and 49 million in East Asia and the Pacific region.

The report said that such moves would put significant pressures on both the sending and receiving regions of migrants, burdening cities and urban centers and jeopardizing development gains.

The Bank said conflicts and health and economic crises such as those unleashed by the COVID-19 pandemic may exacerbate the situation.

The number of migrants due to climate change may be much higher because the report does not cover most international low-income countries, the Middle East, small island states or migration to other countries.

The report's authors said their findings should be seen as an urgent call to governments at regional and national levels and the international community to act now to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Narrowing development gaps and restoring ecosystems.

Doing so, they added, could reduce that migration by 80% to 44 million people.