Sinking Island Nation Of Nauru Unveils Trump-esque Plan To Sell Citizenships, Ostensibly To Pay To Relocate Its Citizens [View all]

The Pacific island nation of Nauru is selling citizenship to fund its retreat from rising seas, the country’s president, David Adeang, announced on Tuesday, opening a contentious “golden passport” scheme as climate financing runs dry. The low-lying island nation of 13,000 residents is planning a mass inland relocation as the human-caused climate crisis raises global sea levels, eating away at the country’s fertile coastal fringe.

The country will drum up funding by selling passports to foreigners for US$105,000 each, despite fears such schemes are ripe for criminal exploitation. Nauru claims its passport will provide visa-free entry into 89 countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong. “For Nauru it is not just about adapting to climate change, but about securing a sustainable and prosperous future for generations to come,” Adeang told AFP. “This is about more than survival. It is about ensuring future generations have a safe, resilient and sustainable home. We are ready for the journey ahead.”

The island republic sits on a small plateau of phosphate rock in the sparsely populated South Pacific. With a total landmass of just 21 square kilometres (8 square miles), it is one of the world’s smallest nations. Unusually pure phosphate deposits – a key ingredient in fertiliser – once made Nauru one of the wealthiest places, per capita, on the planet. But these supplies have long dried up, and researchers today estimate 80% of Nauru has been rendered uninhabitable by mining. What little land Nauru has left is threatened by encroaching tides; scientists have measured sea levels rising 1.5 times faster than global averages.

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Henrietta McNeill, a research fellow in pacific affairs at the Australian National University, said while these schemes helped bolster government revenue, they were also prone to exploitation. She said criminals could use these documents to evade law enforcement, launder money or exploit visa-free entry rules. A previous Nauru attempt to sell passports ended in disaster. In 2003, Nauru officials sold citizenship to al-Qaida members who were later arrested in Asia, according to Australian broadcaster ABC.

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https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/26/nauru-climate-citizenship-golden-passport

Ed. - Incidentally, if you'd like more of Nauru's backstory, there's a fascinating piece from This American Life that's well worth listening to - about 30 minutes in all.

https://www.thisamericanlife.org/253/the-middle-of-nowhere