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Dried river bed
2.3.5

How did El Ni o bring drought to Southern Africa?ñ

ENSO may have its origins in the
Pacific buts it effects are felt across the
globe. The 2015-16 El Niño event was
the strongest on record. It brought
drought condi ons to a vast area
stretching from Australasia through
South East Asia and the Indian subcon-
nent and down through east Africa to
southern Africa and Madagascar.
The drought in Southern Africa was
the most severe in 35 years, according
to the United Na ons. With two years
of crops devastated, the impact of the
drought was s ll being felt a er the
harvest which started in April 2017.
By the end of 2016 some 23 million
people had been affected. This number
had increased further prior to the
harvest of 2017 and the end of the lean
season as food prices con nued to rise.
The 2016 maize harvest was 9.3
million tonnes short of that required to abnormally dry
feed the popula on. Other cereal moderate drought
harvests were down by over 4 million severe drought
tonnes. The result was rising food
prices across the region but there were extreme drought
no rises in wages to pay for food.
excep onal drought
As with all droughts it was first the Fig.256 Drought map for southern Africa, January 2016.
rural poor and then the urban poor
who suffered the most. In a region living in urban areas, meat consump- infec ons. This increases the risks
where two thirds of people s ll rely on on has risen across the con nent. associated with hunger, malnutri on
agriculture for their livelihoods, the Pastoral farming has become more and water-borne diseases, as well as
2015-16 El Niño event became a ma er important; raising livestock cons tutes weakening the ability to recover.
of life and death for millions. 40% of the local agricultural economy.
The loss of so many animals and KEY TERMS
The loss of pasture and the drying
income during the drought will be felt
up of streams and watering holes saw
for years to come. Drought: a period of below average
much of the regions livestock waste rainfall outside the normal climatic
away. Weakened ca le became Children were badly affected by the patterns resulting in a significant decline
suscep ble to outbreaks of disease. drought. By the end of 2016, 580,000 in soil moisture .
Over 640,000 farmed animals died children were suffering from the Tropical Revolving Storm: also called
during the drought, devasta ng the effects of severe acute malnutri on. cyclones, hurricanes and typhoons, these
pastoral farming communi es in Three million had reduced access to are intense low pressure weather systems
Botswana, Swaziland, South Africa, safe drinking water. fuelled by warm sea temperatures and
Namibia and Zimbabwe. Hunger and lack of water forced producing high winds and heavy rain.
In recent years, with more people many children out of school. For some ENSO: the El Niño Southern Oscillation
this was the result of illness, while for involves changes in the Trade Winds and
Fig.257 South Africa’s Oliphants River, 2015. others it was lack of funds to pay school the temperature of the surface waters of
fees, or the need to work to help the Pacific Ocean. The three phases of
support their families. In Malawi, ENSO (Neutral, El Niño and La Niña ) can
137,000 primary school children influence the global climate.
dropped out of school. Coriolis Force: the spin induced in winds
and water moving across the surface of
In many of the drought areas, large the Earth induced by the differential rates
numbers are already living with HIV of rotation between the Equator and the
Poles.

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Drought can be devastating for people and the environment.