The island nation plans to sell citizenship for US$140,500 to fund a new inland town and relocate residents.
Nauru is a small island nation in the Pacific Ocean under threat by climate change. Photo: ShutterstockNauru, a small Pacific island nation, plans to sell citizenships to raise money to relocate about 10,000 residents from homes threatened by rising sea levels and floods.
President David Adeang aims to raise US$65 million (HK$505.4 million) to create a new town with farms and jobs in the island’s interior. Foreigners can buy a passport for about US$140,500 (HK$1.1 million), even if they never visit Nauru.
The passport gives them visa-free access to countries like the UK, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Nauru faces an increased risk of major floods that could impact its coastal cities and its only airport, which is near the ocean.
This concern was highlighted by Alexei Trundle from the Melbourne Centre for Cities, who is assisting Nauru in creating a vulnerability assessment report.