By Emily Case-Buskirk | National Drought Mitigation Center
National Drought Mitigation Center, U.N. collaborated on report
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s National Drought Mitigation Center and the United Nations’ Convention to Combat Desertification have released a report outlining the impacts of drought around the world since 2023.
The report was released July 2 at the fourth International Conference on Financing for Development in Seville, Spain.
The last two years represent some of the worst drought effects seen on a global scale, said Mark Svoboda, report co-author and director of the drought center.
“This is simply not just another dry spell," he said. “This is a global catastrophe covering millions of square miles and affecting millions of people, among the worst I’ve ever seen. This report underscores the need for systematic monitoring of how drought affects lives, livelihoods and the health of the ecosystems that we all depend on.”
The report covers food, water, energy crises and human tragedies resulting from drought events in dozens of countries around the world. It shares impacts within the most acute drought hotspots in Africa, the Mediterranean, Latin America and Southeast Asia based on more than 250 studies, data sources and news reports.
“The Mediterranean countries represent canaries in the coal mine for all modern economies,” Svoboda said. “The struggles experienced by Spain, Morocco and Turkey and many others to secure water, food and energy under persistent drought offer a preview of water futures under unchecked global warming. No country, regardless of wealth or capacity, can afford to be complacent.”
El Niño triggered dry conditions across agricultural lands, ecosystems and urban areas in 2023-24, compounding effects in regions already suffering from heat, population pressures and fragile infrastructure, said report co-author Kelly Helm Smith, assistant director and drought impacts researcher at the drought center.
Read the full story at https://news.unl.edu/article/new-report-details-global-drought-impacts
More details at: https://www.unccd.int/resources/publications/drought-hotspots-around-world-2023-2025