24 Aug 2015

Tuvalu looking at buying NZ and Aust land for displaced

1:37 pm on 24 August 2015

The leader of Tuvalu says his country is having to consider buying land in New Zealand and Australia to grow food and prepare the population to migrate as the seas slowly claim the islands.

Tuvalu and Kiribati both say upcoming climate talks in Paris are vital as rising sea levels threaten their existence.

Fourteen Pacific Island nations have been meeting in Jaipur in India to discuss rising sea levels.

Tuvalu Enele Sopoaga

Tuvalu's Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga Photo: RNZI / Jamie Tahana

Enele Sopoaga says failure is not an option.

He says the nation may be able to purchase land in other places, such as New Zealand and Australia if necessary.

However he says that won't stop climate change and its impact on Tuvalu, whose nine coral atolls are home to about 11,000 people.

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