Drought report calls for new management approach

WMO – Drought has directly affected 1.5 billion people so far this century, more than any other slow-onset disaster. This number will grow dramatically because of climate change, environmental degradation and demographic shifts. Urgent action is therefore needed to improve drought management and prevention, according to a new report.

The Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (GAR) Special Report on Drought 2021 says that drought poses a threat to the achievement of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Sustainable Development Goals and human and ecosystems health and wellbeing.

“Climate change is increasing temperatures and disrupting rainfall patterns, thus increasing the frequency, severity and duration of droughts in many regions. As the world moves towards being two degrees Celsius warmer, urgent action is required to better understand and more effectively manage drought risk to reduce the devastating toll on human lives and livelihoods,” says the report commissioned by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction and incorporating input from the World Meteorological Organization.

It calls for proactive and innovative approaches to drought risk management – reflecting the long-held view of WMO which has campaigned for more proactive, coordinated and sustainable management policies to replace the current crisis-driven piecemeal response.

The report recommends the establishment of new coordination and collaboration mechanisms to rapidly advance the understanding and management of drought risk.

“We are seeing a growing number of disasters. And many of those disasters are related to water… The biggest impacts of climate change have to do with water,” said WMO Secretary-General Prof Petteri Taalas in a news release. “We have to adapt to climate change. And one of the powerful ways to adapt to climate change is to invest in early warning services and meteorological and hydrological services.”

WMO is spearheading a new Water and Climate Coalition to achieve an integrated global Water and Climate Agenda to support more effective adaptation, resilience and sustainable development. A major obstacle to provide efficient and sustainable water solutions is the lack of information about the currently available water resources, future availability and demand for food and energy supply. Decision makers are faced with the same dilemma when it comes to flood and drought risks.

The Special Report on Drought 2021 calls for a new global mechanism to support countries in addressing the transboundary nature of drought risk through strengthened risk governance, partnerships and innovation at regional level and risk-informed action at community level.

The report also promotes the establishment of national drought resilience partnerships that would mobilize public, private and civil society partners and work to ensure a seamless link between national and local levels.

Key recommendations

– Prevention has far lower human, financial and environmental costs than reaction and response.

– Increased understanding of complex systemic risks and improved risk governance can lead to effective action on drought risk.

– Drought resilience partnerships at the national and local levels will be critical to managing drought in a warming world where rainfall will become ever more unpredictable and require practical solutions to tackle issues like deforestation, excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides, overgrazing, salination, waterlogging and soil erosion.

– A mechanism for drought management at the international and national levels could help address the complex and cascading nature of drought risk.

– Financial systems and services need to evolve to encourage cooperative approaches, to promote social protection mechanisms and to encourage risk transfer and contingent financing, so as to provide diversified adaptive support to drought risk management.