As of midaugust 2019, the drought is classified as a level 2 redclass event by the global disaster alert and coordination system. South africa have increased significantly, and the most common type of disaster is drought. Belownormal rainfall was received in isolated areas across the country except in north west. Drought impacts are a key indicator of vulnerability. Horn of africa and 20012003 drought in southern and. Drought declared a national disaster in south africa.
The harvesting of guavas only commences in april but this is the smallest of the four fruits in terms of production volumes. The situation is so desperate that some farmers in south africa have reportedly committed suicide, according to oxfam. A future workshop is expected at the southern africa development. South africa is infamous for its high unemployment, which had risen to 26. Wfp 2016, specifically covering the period october 2015 to january 2016 wfp 2016, it followed the third driest season in the. This study investigated and analysed the preparedness, impact of and. Public health risk assessment and interventions the horn. A threeyear drought has dropped the water level behind the crucial voelvlei dam to dangerously. Deadly drought in southern africa leaves millions hungry. There are many causes of drought in africa, there is need to know the causes in order. Mar 06, 2018 cape towns residents can be fed with crops grown in south africa s other provinces. If there is no playpump at the school the donkey cart is often the only source of water for the schools and communities and these carts are unable to.
The recent drought in southern africa has underscored the need for detailed analysis of the phenomenon. Drought and water crisis in southern africa, european commission. South africas worst drought since 1904 this is what it. To maintain a database of beneficiaries and assistance provided. To build capacity in communities through relevant training and education. Labelled day zero by local officials and brought on by three consecutive years of anemic rainfall, april 12, 2018, was to be the date of the largest drought induced municipal water failure. South africa water shortage, cape town drought water. Gideon van zyl walks past withered vines on his drought hit farm on january 10, 2018 in vredendal, south africa.
Texas, oklahoma and new mexico were most adversely affected. Drought preparedness and mitigation plan is divided into four sections, namely prediction, monitoring, impact based assessment and response. How droughts will affect south africas broader economy. This is according to solidarity, which has documented the. South africa blue sky publications pty ltd ta thesouthafrican number.
The spi is an index used to monitor the occurrence of meteorological drought. Studies on the prediction and monitoring of droughts. South africa has declared a national disaster over the drought afflicting southern and western regions including cape town, though the city pushed back its day zero, the date when its taps are. South africa declares drought a national disaster reuters. The new humanitarian drought in africa leaves 45 million. How mismanagement is making the 2019 drought in africa. More than 50 million people face hunger crisis due to. Drought monitor map comparison slider displays the usdm maps from two selected dates, and allows the user to determine which is displayed by using a slider bar. Drought is the most relevant hazard in south africa and. Many indices and indicators are available to assist in the quantitative assessment of drought severity. Drought monitor is a weekly map of drought conditions that is produced jointly by the national oceanic and atmospheric administration, the u. South africa grapples with worst drought in 30 years bbc.
The horn of africa hoa subregion is experiencing the worst drought in 60 years, following two consecutive failed rainy seasons 20102011. The impact of the drought, and ensuing extraordinarily high levels of malnutrition, internal. The most affected countries are djibouti, ethiopia, kenya and somalia. The drought began in late october 2018, and is negatively affecting food security in the region. To distribute agricultural starter packs at community level. Deadly drought in southern africa leaves millions hungry november 25, 2019 in this photo taken on thursday, nov. Cape town may have avoided day zero, but there are parts of south africa that have not, particularly several karoo towns in the eastern cape that have run out of water. Nw provinces, south africa based on the spi and spei drought monitoring parameters. There is no doubt that the drought and water restrictions pose a serious challenge for rfg. This paper outlines firstly the dimensions of drought in south africa, including the biophysical and. Lessons lost andor learnt from 1990 to 2005 wayne devlin austin a dissertation submitted to the faculty of science, university of the witwatersrand. African drought monitor ihpviii unesco digital library.
Regus business centre 1st floor, block b, north park, black river park, 2 fir street. Fiveyear drought continues in spain, antonio mestre barcelo. The most vulnerable communities have suffered consecutive years of drought. The extreme us great grain belt drought of 2012 is. In 2018, the city of cape town experienced its worst drought in over a century. Nov 30, 2015 south africa is facing one of the worst droughts to hit the region in 30 years, affecting food production and prices, while many small farmers are expected to go out of business, writes the bbcs. A better than projected maize crop will obviously mitigate food inflation.
This seasons gu long rains march to may were poor or delayed. Informing the western cape agricultural sector on the 2015. Data from the centre for research on the epidemiology of disaster 2011 show that drought is a major. 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. 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. Analysis of drought progression physiognomies in south africa. Cape town may have avoided day zero, but there are parts of south africa that have not, particularly several karoo towns in the eastern cape that have. Current conditions global drought information system. Most of south africa is suffering from one of the worst droughts in over 30 years. Map archive view any map format for a selected week. Many small farmers are expected to go out of business as food production and prices increase, especially in. List of designated drought disaster counties pdf, 155 kb u. Emergency response coordination centre ercc dg echo daily map 29012019.
The analysis report indicated that some areas in the seven provinces were experiencing drought. Flow chart of the african drought monitor and forecast system the. Youth unemployment in cape town itself is higher, measured at 31. The standardised precipitation evapotranspiration index spei is a measure of weather shocks that incorporates the role of temperature in drought severity, in addition to rainfall. It is a recurring phenomenon, with spatial and temporal characteristics that vary significantly from one region to another noaa, 2006. Mar, 2018 government has declared a national state of disaster to deal with the countrys drought and water crisis. According to a report released by the department of water and sanitation last week, south africa s dams saw an improvement by a fraction of a. The year 2016 was the hottest year on record since measurements began.
Drought returns to the united kingdom, terry marsh. Drought is a major disaster in south africa in terms of total economic loss and number of people affected. At least nine other african nations are also suffering from drought. The new humanitarian drought in africa leaves 45 million in. Data from statistics south africa s income and expenditure surveys provide information on diet choices and how these change in response to food prices. Although a late burst of rainfall has helped replenish pasture in the south and southeast, it came too late for some cropproducing areas and the food security situation is expected to deteriorate. Visit the wrc drought portal at za background south africa is a semiarid to arid country with a highly variable climate with highly constrained freshwater resources. Authorities warn cape town is less than three months away. This study investigated and analysed the preparedness, impact of and response by the. The province has experienced varying levels of drought since 2015, with extremely reduced rainfall. The 20162017 season will be remembered as the driest recorded since 1904, and has placed tremendous pressure on south africa s economy. Drought characterization in south africa under a changing. The drought has pushed an additional 50,000 people in south africa below the poverty line of 501 rand a month, the world bank said earlier this month.
Building drought resilience through early warning in. It is the gateway to the rest of africa, with its shared borders making it favourably situated for economic cooperation with other. How droughts will affect south africa s broader economy editions. Johannesburg the worst drought in the country in more than 20 years could knock 0. This site was created to make that obvious to everyone. In south africa, drought is a very important phenomenon that affects not only agricultural production but also society. South africa is facing one of the worst droughts to hit the region in 30 years, affecting food production and prices, while many small farmers are.
Drought is a creeping phenomenon with no universal definitiondefinitions are region and application impact specific. Drought also affected parts of arizona, kansas, arkansas, georgia, florida, mississippi, alabama, south and north carolina. Mar 06, 2019 if the pattern of drought continues in south africa its likely to affect the countrys financial standing too. It said south africa, where drought emergencies have been declared in most provinces, has already issued a preliminary forecast of maize production for the coming harvest of 7.
Thankfully, in 2018 the region had a relatively bountiful rainy season, and the city was able to escape its day zero plans for turning off the citys water supply. To monitor implementation on agreed activities, keep. Water crisis grips cape town, south africa, after drought. Drought monitoring and information centre established for arid zone of south africa, louis g. The federation continues to monitor the situation and has offered to assist the south africa red cross to coordinate the possible international red cross and red crescent movement assistance in. Oct 10, 2019 cape town may have avoided day zero, but there are parts of south africa that have not, particularly several karoo towns in the eastern cape that have run out of water. Africa is a good example of great vulnerability to drought and desertification and a seemingly inability to manage these climate based issues. Climate trends globally and in south africa the impacts of the current drought have been magnified by the high temperatures experienced simultaneously, particularly in the last three years. Limpopo province is situated in the northern part of south africa figure 1. A serious multiyear drought in parts of south africa s northern and eastern cape provinces has seen a number of small towns threatened by.
A drought means a long period of dry weather during which the lack of rain results in a severe shortage of water. Drought monitor is produced through a partnership between the national drought mitigation center at the university of nebraskalincoln, the united states department of agriculture, and the national oceanic and atmospheric administration. Background to current drought situation in south africa. Gdo analytical report drought in zimbabwe, zambia and. Drought characterization in south africa under a changing climate. Amatola water board to lead drought intervention in eastern cape.
These streams were activated to monitor and report impacts of the. Opportunities for enhancing resilience 2016 edited by raffaello cervigni and michael morris available in french all books in the africa development forum series are available for free at. Lessons lost andor learnt from 1990 to 2005 wayne devlin austin a dissertation submitted to the faculty of science, university of the witwatersrand, johannesburg, in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of science. Rubaba, federico barra, claudia berg, richard damania, john nash, and jason russ confronting drought in africas drylands.
Drought and water crisis in southern africa jrc publications. Feb 25, 2016 south africas worst drought in more than a century is taking its toll on the economy as farms cut jobs and the cost of producing food surged. The 201820 mozambique drought is an ongoing period of drought taking place in southern africa. Drought, animal disease threatens south african farmers. Projected future aridity is presented based on recent studies and our analysis of model simulations. South west indian ocean south atlantic ocean cabinda angola 1spi standardized precipitation index is used to monitor the occurrence of meteorological drought. The record streak is 32 weeks, set from jan 1aug 6, 2019. Department of agriculture, and the national drought mitigation center ndmc at the university of nebraskalincoln. Jan 29, 2018 her watersaving measures are becoming the norm in south africas secondlargest city, which is in the midst of a yearslong drought.
Cape towns water crisis was declared a national disaster on tuesday by south africas government. The extent to which the drought in south africa may impact the quality of the balance of the harvest remains uncertain. South africa is facing one of the worst droughts to hit the region in 30 years. Update on the impact of the drought in the south africa. South africa is one of the drought prone countries in the african continent.
South africas dams saw an improvement by a fraction of a percent 0. Worst drought in 30 years hits sout africa bbc news. In the rural communities, cattle are dying, farmers are unable to plant crops, rivers and dams are running dry. Impacts of drought induced water shortages in south africa. 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. The south african weather service defines a drought as a period of 12 moths when. South africa grapples with worst drought in 30 years bbc news. Drought monitor week saw an active weather pattern impact various parts of the conterminous u. Looking back on cape towns drought and day zero citylab. Drought is fast becoming a natural phenomenon in parts of east and south africa. Map of the african continent with country names and rainfall patterns. Jaco minnaar, chairman of grain sa, an industry body that represents grain producers, said the reduced plantings could have devastating.