Climate Conversations - Preparing for drought can pay off as climate impacts take hold
By Esther Williams | Yesterday at 4:44 PM | Comments ( 0 )
Internally displaced Somali women and their children camp outside their makeshift shelter in the Somali capital of Mogadishu on August 6, 2011. REUTERS/Ismail Taxta
By Esther Williams
A humanitarian emergency continues to persist across the Horn of Africa. Farmlands are brown and months of blazing sunshine have dried up lakes, rivers and pasture as the worst drought in 60 years weighs on parts of the region.
More than 12 million people are affected by severe food shortages and aid agencies like Tearfund are responding with life-saving assistance. Over 40,000 people across the region are receiving clean water, non-food items, and veterinary support for their animals as part of the aid agency’s efforts.
In the midst of a food crisis, meeting people’s immediate needs is crucial. However, as questions are asked as to why this part of world is regularly hit by food shortages, it is vital to highlight that the situation in East Africa had been forecast months before the region began to receive high profile media attention and before donors sat up and paid attention.
The reality is that governments are wedded to emergency response and remain painfully slow to invest in disaster risk reduction strategies. We know which parts of the world are most disaster-prone and that lives can be saved through preventative measures.
GAME CHANGER
We know that climate change is a game-changer and, unless rapid action is taken to curb it, the odds are these life-threatening weather events will only increase. So it’s shameful that we continue to stick plasters on gaping wounds.
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