However, a comprehensive analysis of droughts, including their evolution, complexity, social implications. Climate change has brought parts of zambia to the brink of famine zambia wrestles with devastating drought caused, experts say, by a dramatic shift in weather patterns. The western part of southern africa is set to become drier, with increasing drought frequency and number of heat waves toward the end of the 21st century. Droughts are not new to this region, but they are intensifying. A drought means a long period of dry weather during which the lack of rain results in a severe shortage of water. There is growing scientific analysis suggesting that climate change aggravates their impacts.
All droughts originate from a deficiency of precipitation or meteorological drought but other types of drought and impacts cascade from this deficiency. Drought is increasingly on the minds of americans and concerned citizens everywhere. Because of the crisis in ethiopia, and across the region, cafod has launched an emergency appeal for east africa. As the meteorological mechanisms that cause drought make clear. Drought in southern africa, harare, 16 september 1993. Anticipatory management axel rothauge neudamm agricultural college, pbag 188, windhoek, namibia 2. Droughts and desertification key concepts you must know, or be able to do the following. Reduced incomes due to drought caused gdp to fall by 1. Vogt 1 executive summary of part i western cape province in south africa is going through a severe drought, affecting in particular the. The recent drought conditions have affected some parts of ethiopia particularly hard because there are very few irrigation systems in. Projected future aridity is presented based on recent studies and our analysis of model simulations. As humancaused climate change is increasingly pushed, many scientists are studying its supposed effects on drought.
Jan 23, 2020 regardless of a drought s stage, there are short and long term consequences with any drought because of nature and societys dependence on water. Diminished and late rainfall, combined with longterm increases in temperatures, have jeopardized the food security and energy supplies of millions of. Understanding what causes a lack of precipitation helps shape policies and choices that have. Africa is a good example of great vulnerability to drought and desertification and a seemingly inability to manage these climate based issues.
The south african weather service defines a drought as a period of 12 moths when. The causes of drought are either natural or manmade or both. These are just two of the headlines that appeared in january. Mar 17, 2017 the 2016 drought scorched swaziland, leaving an estimated 638,251 people in need of aid. Data from the centre for research on the epidemiology of disaster 2011 show that drought is a major.
Drought is one of the most frequent and devastating phenomena that occur in south africa. Because drought is defined as a deficit in water supply, it can be caused by a number of factors. The drought began in late october 2018, and is negatively affecting food security in the region. In south africa, drought is a very important phenomenon that affects not only agricultural production but also society. Sheep and goats which have died because of the continuous drought situation in somaliland. This kind of drought takes a long time to become severe and equally long time to recover from it. Hence, there is a pressing need for an overview of drought studies in ea. This map of the most recent growing season in east africa reveals the poor conditions that led to famine in parts of somalia and a food emergency in somalia, ethiopia, kenya, and djibouti. Countries that experience little rainfall have an even greater scarcity of rainfall. A drought is a period of drierthannormal conditions that results in waterrelated problems. More rain, sleet, hail, and snow can occur where there are moist, lowpressure air systems. This paper outlines firstly the dimensions of drought in south africa, including the biophysical and. The air then rises, loses its moisture during rainfall, and then flows westward and descends over africa, causing drought conditions in ethiopia and kenya. The effects of drought are widespread and have devastating effects on the environment and the society as a whole.
Lack or insufficient rainfall or precipitation this is the major cause of droughts in most regions. For many in east africa, the current drought is the worst in living memory. A lack of precipitation is the most common definition of drought and is usually the type of drought referred to in news reports and the media. This paper outlines firstly the dimensions of drought in south. This causes drought conditions later on when people or natural systems are accustomed to having water available from snowmelt. The rainfall forecast is for average to abovenormal rains, but household productivity is expected to. It describes the issues of drought identification, causes, prediction. Majority of peasant people in nigeria rely on fuel wood as source of energy. As of midaugust 2019, the drought is classified as a level 2 redclass event by the global disaster alert and coordination system. We obtained the number of years during 19802001 in which drought disasters were recorded for every country in southern africa botswana, lesotho, madagascar, malawi, mauritius, mozambique, namibia, south africa, swaziland, zambia, and zimbabwe from the emdat global disaster history database.
What the drought did was highlight existing vulnerabilities in south africas water system, and properly frame the magnitude of the challenge of ensuring water security for the country. Zolotokrylin encyclopedia of life support systems eolss precipitation over the land mostly outside arid areas. It can be caused by not receiving rain or snow over a period of time. Recent years include the most dreadful droughts in the horn, and severe droughts in 2009 and 2011 in kenya. The 2016 drought scorched swaziland, leaving an estimated 638,251 people in need of aid.
One of the main causes of drought in south africa is the variability in rainfall. As a consequence of such fluctuations the rainproducing components for ethiopia have been weakened or dislocated during drought years. A longdrawnout period without rainfall can cause an area to dry out. Jul 04, 2011 prolonged drought in the horn of africa is the immediate cause of the severe food crisis already affecting around 10 million people in parts of kenya, ethiopia, djibouti and somalia. East africa ea has been the primary focus for various drought studies in recent years.
Drought in east africa the result of climate change and. Drought has become more frequent and intense worldwide the horn of africa has been affected by droughts almost every year for the past 12 years. Southern africa is suffering through its worst drought in several decades and perhaps a century. Zolotokrylin encyclopedia of life support systems eolss van nostrand reinhold company, new york. However, a comprehensive analysis of droughts, including their evolution, complexity, social implications and peoples vulnerability is currently lacking. Causes, effects and mitigation 173 of trees due to drought. According to the national climate data centre, droughts comes in second to hurricanes in regards to causing severe economic impacts.
For example, in southern africa droughts tend to happen in the december to march rainy season. Jul 26, 2011 the drought in east africa is reportedly the regions worst in six decades, and it threatens the lives of millions of people with food shortages. We learned in the discussions about the water cycle and weather that changes in the wind patterns that move clouds and moisture through the atmosphere can cause a place to not receive its normal amount of rain or snow over a long period of time if you live in a place where most. Strategic advance management in anticipation of a drought a drought that strikes a prepared farmer is a drought that will bring less loss and fear than expected. Pdf east africa ea has been the primary focus for various drought studies in recent years. Some of the worst droughts witnessed in subsaharan africa have been associated with global warming and climate change. The increasing rate of evaporation from the soil and vegetation leads to drought in africa. Recently, the 20102011 horn of africa drought caused a wide range of dire situations in the region viste et al.
Assess which areas would be prone to droughts and desertification on both a global, regional and local scale. Drought definitions conceptual definitions, formulated in general terms, help people understand the concept of drought. It is a recurring phenomenon, with spatial and temporal characteristics that vary significantly from one region to another noaa, 2006. Basic food prices remain high at the peak of the lean season. Problems associated with drought can have economic, environmental, and social impacts on both the areas where they occur and areas that have relations with those where the drought happens. The 201820 southern africa drought is an ongoing period of drought taking place in southern africa. The rainfall forecast is for average to abovenormal rains, but household productivity is expected to be lower than normal.
Recurrence of drought in nigeria causes effects and report,1 understanding what drought is and its causes, how it has affected north america in the past, and how drought may affect the united states in the future all bear on actions congress may take to prepare for and mitigate the effects of drought. Aug 04, 2011 the recent drought conditions have affected some parts of ethiopia particularly hard because there are very few irrigation systems in a country where 85 percent still live in rural areas and. Western cape province in south africa is going through a severe drought, affecting in particular the highly populated urban area of cape town and its water supply. These scientists concluded, after examining the regions weather and climate data, that most of that warming is the result of greenhouse gas and aerosol emissions from human activities. The impact of drought on subsaharan african economies. Vogt 1 executive summary of part i western cape province in south africa is going through a severe drought. While geographers have researched the causes and impacts of drought in many african contexts, south africa and in particular its bantustans have not received sufficient similar attention. The amount of precipitation at a particular location varies from year to year, but over a period of years, the average amount is fairly constant. Meteorological drought is caused by persistent anomalies e.
Types, causes and effects of droughts earth eclipse. Scientific investigations have revealed that the primary cause is the fluctuation of the general atmospheric circulation. This report forms part of a series of three reports. An operational definition of drought helps people to identify the beginning, end, and degree of.
The recent drought in southern africa has underscored the need for detailed analysis of the phenomenon. Most locations around the world have their own meteorological definition of drought based on the climate normals in the area. South africa have increased significantly, and the most common type of disaster is drought. We learned in the discussions about the water cycle and weather that changes in the wind patterns that move clouds and moisture through the atmosphere can cause a place to not receive its normal amount of rain or snow over a long period of time. This is why people must learn to insulate themselves from it implications by ensuring prudent use of water when its bountiful in supply. Drought and its associated impacts have been causing critical problems for. The debt problem is not only slowing economic growth and increasing poverty. The current drought is the effect of a sustained belowaverage monthly rainfall series since 2015, which intensified in the last wet season april to september 2017. Causes and current understanding congressional research service summary drought is a natural hazard with potentially significant economic, social, and ecological consequences. The western united states has experienced periods of horrible droughts throughout history, and climate change is blamed for producing more extreme weather variations in many other regions.
Ndmc meteorological drought is defined usually on the basis of the degree of dryness in comparison to some normal or average amount and the duration of the dry period. Drought characteristics and management in north africa and the. The global warming situation tends to exacerbate the drought conditions. The impacts of drought first order impacts such as food security concerns and second order impacts such as increasing food imports from abroad produce a range of effects for many in society benson and clay, 1998. History suggests that severe and extended droughts are inevitable and part of natural climate cycles. What are the main natural and human causes of drought. Thousands are fleeing somalia to seek food in kenya and ethiopia, according to catholic relief services, which is responding to the disaster. Prolonged drought in the horn of africa is the immediate cause of the severe food crisis already affecting around 10 million people in parts of. The most important one though relates to the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere as this is what creates precipitation. Drought is a natural disaster that can have far reaching impacts. Ethiopia drought causes and solutions ethiopia reliefweb. Impacts of drought induced water shortages in south africa.
826 1152 89 860 1431 176 1147 1172 1104 998 792 598 1025 894 379 341 1335 121 1190 1548 46 525 1055 56 315 862 554 1044 1103 1099 727