“Resource insecurity is becoming the main cause of forced migration.” To what extent do you agree with this statement?

Marks should be allocated according to the paper 2 section C markbands. These can be found under the “Your tests” tab > supplemental materials.

Possible applied themes (AO2) demonstrating knowledge and understanding (AO1):

• Resource insecurity that could result in forced migration could be related to food – famine; water –or drought/contamination/disease. For example, Somalis moving to Kenya as a result of ongoing drought and famine.
• Population growth many be seen as the underlying cause of resource insecurity, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Alternatively there are many other causes of forced migration, both political (war/minority persecution), social (intolerance eg, LGBTQI+/crime/religion), economic (lack of employment opportunities) and environmental (sea level changes).
• Many of the factors listed above do not work in isolation and have close causal links – many wars are the result of access to resources eg, Somalia, Sudan.
• Responses may argue that the underlying cause of all significant forced migrations is climate change, which increases the likelihood of resource insecurity.

Good answers may be well structured (AO4) and may additionally offer a critical evaluation (AO3) that focuses on the changing role of resource insecurity as a catalyst of forced migrations over time. Responses may address the spatial aspect of forced migration and the role of resource insecurity in different parts of the world.

For 5–6 marks
Expect a weakly evidenced outlining of resource insecurity as a cause of forced migration

For 7–8 marks
Expect a well-structured account which includes:

• either a well-evidenced synthesis that links together several themes from the guide and acknowledges both sides of the argument
• or a critical conclusion (or ongoing evaluation) informed by geographical concepts and/or perspectives.

For 9–10 marks
Expect both traits.

As with question 5, candidates were competent in their knowledge and understanding of causes of forced migration and what was pleasing was the sustained focus on forced migration with limited drift into voluntary migration. The majority of responses related resource insecurity to food and the causes of food shortage whether natural or human. Surprisingly few attempted to review the impact of population growth on the demand for resources and most relied on the analysis of food supply. A number linked resource insecurity with climate change and developed good case studies that explained the pressure of climate change consequences such as sea level rise, increased occurrence of drought and extreme weather on resource security. When examining other causes of forced migration, the majority of answers focused on political tensions and armed conflict, which was perfectly acceptable but there could have been more reference to social intolerance. In a number of cases candidates addressed the 'to what extent' aspect of the question by examining the diversity and integration of factors that cause forced migration with some good case study material from Syria and Iraq. This allowed candidates to give the critical evaluation required for a comprehensive response to the question. Other answers addressed the evaluation by looking at the causes of forced migration in different locations. As with question 5, answers were stronger in knowledge and understanding than application and evaluation.