Drought emergency declared by 23 countries in 2022-23, shows global drought map

Subject : Environment

Section: International Conventions

Context:

At least 23 countries, including India, declared drought emergencies at a national or sub-national level during 2022-23, showed new data from a global drought map compiled by the United Nations, pointing to unprecedented urgency on a planetary scale.

About the Report:

Title: Global Drought Snapshot 2023
Released by: United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
Report is based on reporting by 101 Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

Key findings:

1.84 billion people were drought-stricken, out of which 4.7 per cent were exposed to severe or extreme drought.
An emergency was declared in 23 countries due to the impact of drought.
- Of these, Europe had the highest number (8) — Spain, Italy and United Kingdom declaring it in April, May and July 2023, respectively, while Greece, Portugal, Romania and Serbia in July 2022.
In 2022, the continent recorded its largest overall drought impacted area — over 630,000 square kilometres, as opposed to the 167,000 square kilometres annual average between 2000 and 2022.
In Asia, five countries declared drought — India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Kazakhstan and China.
Countries that have declared drought- the USA, Canada, Uruguay and the African countries of Ethio[ia, Kenya, Somalia, Niger, Djibouti, Cabo Verde and Mauritania, Kiribati, the Marshal Islands, and Tuvalu.
On November 17, 2023, the world breached 2 degrees Celsius of warming, a number the world was constantly warned of not crossing.
85 per cent of people affected by droughts live in low-or middle-income countries. Moreover, 98 per cent of the 32.6 million new disaster displacements in 2022 were the result of weather-related hazards such as storms, floods and droughts.

Impact of these droughts:

Decreased reservoir levels, declining crop yields, loss of biological diversity, famines and serious economic consequences, especially in agriculture-dependent regions where drought-related crop failures lead to food shortages and often skyrocketing prices, potentially disrupting global food supply chains.

International Drought Resilience Alliance (IDRA):

First announced by Spain at the 77th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2022 to be officially launched at the UNFCCC COP27 in November 2022.
The alliance is jointly convened by the Governments of Senegal and Spain.
Interested members of the Alliance see the urgent need to pivot from emergency response to increasing drought resilience through a more coordinated and effective response.