WD News: At the initiative of the Presidents of Senegal, Macky Sall, and Spain, Pedro Sánchez, leaders from over 25 countries and 20 organisations launched the International Drought Resilience Alliance to accelerate action and help countries to be better prepared for future droughts.
In the declaration made on the margins of Sharm el-Sheikh Climate Change Conference that opened in Egypt, leaders from all sectors pledged to drive change in how the world tackles the growing drought risks, moving from emergency response to building long-term resilience.
World leaders at the launch of International Drought Resilience Alliance.
Droughts are hitting more often and harder than before, up nearly by a third since 2000. Climate change is expected to cause more severe droughts in the future. Recent droughts in Australia, Europe, western United States, Chile, the Horn and Southern Africa show that no country or region is immune to their impact, which runs into billions of dollars each year, not to mention human suffering.
Drought in Numbers
- According to the latest Drought in Numbers report compiled by UNCCD, droughts have increased in frequency by 29% since 2000, with some 55 million people affected every year.
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that three out of every four people in the world will be living in drier, water-scare conditions by 2050.
- Between 1900 and 2019, droughts impacted 2.7 billion people worldwide and caused 11.7 million deaths.
- From 1998 to 2017, drought generated economic losses of about USD 124 billion across the world, not to mention the cost in human suffering and lives.
- Drought is a driver of migration: water deficits explain 10% of the rise in total migration.
- The latest IPCC report projects that by 2030, drought will displace 700 million people in Africa alone.
- By 2040, an estimated one in four children will live in areas with extreme water shortages.
- Up to 216 million people could be forced to migrate by 2050, largely due to drought in combination with other factors including water scarcity, declining crop productivity, sea-level rise, and overpopulation.
Presidents Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón of Spain and Macky Sall of Senegal rallied world leaders to create the Alliance as “a specific solution for the United Nations” to the impacts of climate change.
In a joint communication, Presidents Sánchez and Sall declared, “We are only as resilient to climate change as our land is. Building resilience to drought disasters is the way to secure the gains we make on each sustainable development goal, particularly for the most vulnerable people. The mission of the alliance is to give political impetus to make the land’s resilience to drought and climate change a reality by 2030.”
Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), said, “We are in a race for drought resilience – and it’s a race we can win. Drought is a natural hazard but does not have to lead to human disaster. The solutions are available, and we can create a drought resilient world by increasing our ambition, harnessing the political will, and joining forces to act together.”
The alliance will be bolstered by new political commitments, including a Euro 5 million seed fund announced by Spain, co-convener of the event with Senegal, to support the work of the alliance and catalyse a process to mobilise more resources for this agenda.
Among the key objectives of alliance is promoting the consolidation of regional initiatives to fast-track sharing of innovation, technology transfer and mobilisation of resources. It will also collaborate with other platforms, including the initiative launched by United Nations Secretary-General and World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) to achieve universal coverage of early warning systems and regional initiatives to reap the maximum benefits of working together on drought resilience.
Source & Image Courtesy: UNCCD
