Latest news with #IbrahimThiaw
Scoop
22-07-2025
- Climate
- Scoop
Droughts Are Causing Record Devastation Worldwide, UN-backed Report Reveals
21 July 2025 This is according to a new report from the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the U.S. National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC) and the International Drought Resilience Alliance on the global impacts of droughts from 2023 to 2025. 'Drought is a silent killer. It creeps in, drains resources, and devastates lives in slow motion. Its scars run deep,' said UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw. 'This is not a dry spell,' stressed Dr. Mark Svoboda, report co-author and NDMC Director. 'This is a slow-moving global catastrophe, 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.' Record devastation in Africa According to the report, as 90 million people face acute hunger across Eastern and Southern Africa, some areas in the region have been experiencing the worst drought ever recorded. In Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi, maize and wheat crops have suffered repeated failures. In Zimbabwe in particular, the 2024 corn crop was down 70 per cent year on year, maize prices doubled, and 9,000 cattle died of thirst and starvation. Some 43,000 people in Somalia died in 2022 alone due to drought-linked hunger. The crisis continued through 2025, with a quarter of the population facing crisis-level food insecurity at the beginning of the year. As a result of drought, Zambia is suffering one of the world's worst energy crises: in April, the Zambezi River plummeted to 20 per cent of its long-term average, and the country's largest hydroelectric plant, the Kariba Dam, fell to 7 per cent generation capacity, causing electricity blackouts of up to 21 hours a day. This has led to the shuttering of hospitals, bakeries, and factories, further compounding the devastation. Worldwide impacts But the effects of drought extend beyond Africa. For example, by September 2023 in Spain, two years of drought and record heat caused a 50 per cent drop in the olive crop, doubling olive oil prices nationwide. In Türkiye, drought-accelerated groundwater depletion has triggered sinkholes, endangering communities and their infrastructure while reducing aquifer storage capacity. In the Amazon Basin, record-low river levels in 2023 and 2024 led to mass deaths of fish and endangered dolphins, disrupted drinking water supplies and created transport challenges for hundreds of thousands. Ongoing deforestation and fires also threaten to shift the Amazon from a carbon sink to a carbon source. Declining water levels in the Panama Canal slashed transit by more than one-third, leading to major global trade disruptions. Among the spillover effects were declines in American soybean exports and shortages and rising prices reported in UK grocery stores. Call for cooperation and solutions The report listed several recommendations to help combat this crisis, including stronger early warning systems, real-time drought and drought impact monitoring, and nature-based solutions such as watershed restoration and indigenous crop use. It also called for more resilient infrastructure – including off-grid energy and alternative water supply systems – and global cooperation, particularly regarding transboundary river basins and trade routes.
India Today
03-07-2025
- Climate
- India Today
How climate change-fuelled drought hit India's sugar production
A new UN-backed report reveals that severe droughts since 2023 have disrupted production and supply chains of key crops like rice, coffee, and sugar, triggering global price rises and deepening food report, Drought Hotspots Around the World 2023-2025, prepared by the U.S. National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC) and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), highlights how climate change and increasing pressure on land and water resources have fueled some of the most widespread and damaging drought events in recorded Thailand and India, major producers of sugar, the 2023-2024 dry conditions caused a 12.4% drop in sugar harvests. This shortage contributed to an 8.9% increase in sugar and sweets prices in the United States over the past year. Similarly, rice production in Southeast Asia was severely the region's largest economy, faced steep rice shortages by late 2023, forcing imports from neighboring countries to meet demand. The resulting rice price surge became a key driver of inflation, prompting the Indonesian government to provide rice aid to over 21 million families. Bullock carts loaded with sugarcane head towards the Saiyadri Sugar Factory during the crushing season, in Karad. (PTI Photo) advertisementCoffee production also suffered. Vietnam, the world's largest producer of Robusta coffee, experienced a 20% decline in its 2023-24 harvest due to heat, drought, and pest outbreaks, pushing coffee futures to record drought conditions were intensified by the 2023–2024 El Nio event, which amplified the impacts of climate change across vulnerable Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw described drought as a 'silent killer' that slowly drains resources and devastates lives. The report warns that drought is no longer a distant threat but an escalating crisis demanding urgent global cooperation. It compounds poverty, hunger, energy insecurity, and ecosystem collapse, with ripple effects disrupting economies emphasise that drought's growing frequency and severity—driven by climate change—require proactive, coordinated action, including improved early warning systems, resilient infrastructure, and sustainable water such measures, droughts will continue to threaten food security and livelihoods across the globe.- EndsTrending Reel
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Experts hail nation's 'remarkable' water recovery — here's how they did it
Morocco has seen a dramatic increase in its water reserves, the latest bit of good news for a country dealing with the effects of warming global temperatures. Even though the North African nation has faced nearly six years of intense drought conditions, Morocco World News reports its dam water reserves had a filling rate of 28.4% as of early January. During the same time in 2024, that number was 23.2%, marking a "remarkable" jump in the total water within the country's reservoirs. Experts say the increase is largely due to favorable weather conditions and increased rainfall, but it is also the result of hard work across the nation. Do you take steps to conserve water at home? All the time Usually Sometimes Never Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Located in an arid climate, Morocco has spent decades strategically building dams, a plan Morocco World News refers to as "a journey towards water security." More than 130 dams have been constructed since Morocco became independent in 1956, which has increased its water storage capacity by more than 700%, per the news outlet. For a nation ranked 22nd most at risk of water shortage by the World Resources Institute, per the International Trade Administration, any increase in water is significant. And these efforts come at a time when droughts and water scarcity are becoming more prevalent globally. The United Nations estimates that three-quarters of the global population may face water scarcity by 2050. This not only lessens access to drinking water, but also has severe ramifications on agriculture and other key industries. In a U.N. report, executive secretary Ibrahim Thiaw said the data points to an increase in droughts and their duration, "not only affecting human societies but also the ecological systems upon which the survival of all life depends." To combat this, some cities have enacted measures such as "extreme water recycling." Fortunately, an increased water supply is just the latest bit of welcome news to come from Morocco. The North African nation is already home to a concentrated solar plant that is touted as the world's largest. And last year, the country announced it will dedicate roughly 2.5 million acres of land to green hydrogen projects. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Representatives from 197 nations push critical decision to 2026 at UN talks: 'Do not require collective action'
Two weeks of talks at a United Nations Conference of the Parties in mid-December failed to produce a legally binding framework for the 197 member countries to combat global drought, according to the Associated Press. "We have elevated the land and drought agenda beyond sector-specific discussions, establishing it as a cornerstone of global efforts to address inter-connected challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, food insecurity, migration, and global security," Ibrahim Thiaw, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification chief, said during closing remarks. The UN's COP16 took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Attempts were made by proponents to enshrine funding for early drought warning systems and resilient infrastructure for poorer countries. African countries, in particular, have been advocating for drought funding for years. Opponents included the United States, European Union, and Argentina — according to Climate Home News. Would you install water-collecting hydropanels on your home? Definitely Not sure No way If the government pays for it Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. "A new international agreement to address the issue of drought is not the best approach," said a U.S. spokesperson, as Climate Home News reported. "Droughts have local causes and as such do not require collective action. A one-size-fits-all global policy is not the most effective response." Drought and desertification have a harsh and direct effect on food production. With less food readily available, local populations are forced to migrate, adding pressure on resources at their eventual destinations. Per the AP, curbing climate change was not discussed as a solution to drought at COP16, despite the clear link between the two that organizations such as NASA have detailed. This is unsurprising, as host country Saudi Arabia remains a leading producer of oil, which creates the pollution that is exacerbating the overheating planet and subsequent droughts. In the same vein, we've seen Saudi Arabia strongly oppose action against plastics at UN meetings. The Saudi Arabian hosts — along with a few other countries and international banks — pledged $2.15 billion toward drought resilience at the launch of COP16. The Arab Coordination Group will also be chipping in $10 billion by 2030 to address desertification and drought in 80 of the most vulnerable countries. That's just a drop in the bucket compared to the $125 billion that droughts have already cost the world between 2007 and 2017, according to the UN. Large-scale initiatives are needed to prevent drought and adapt to it, but you can do your part at home, too. Collecting rainwater to use in the garden, running washing machines on eco settings, and even installing a bidet can all help to reduce water consumption. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Report Reveals World's Fourth Largest Lake Now a Deadly Desert
Before the 1960s, the fourth largest lake on Earth glistened for miles across the borders of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. By 2015 most of that shiny surface was reduced to a hauntingly barren expanse, birthing the world's newest desert and impacting 3 million people that live in the surrounding region. The Aral Sea once spanned 68,000 sq km (26,000 sq mi), but reports now suggest all that currently remains is a few slithers amounting to about 8,000 sq km of water. The rest of its bone-white seabed now forms the Aralkum desert. "It is certainly one of the biggest environmental disasters in the world," Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, said last year. Studies have found the loss of this inland sea nearly doubled the region's atmospheric dust between 1984 and 2015, from 14 to 27 million metric tons. The airborne former lakebed has reduced air quality in neighboring cities, even as far as 800 kilometers (500 miles) away, and is contributing to the acceleration of glacial melt. This is then further exacerbating the region's water crisis. Storms spread these damaging salts, destroying crops hundreds of kilometers away, and contaminating drinking water. Aralkum's dust is particularly toxic compared to the rest of the region's desert dust because it contains runoff from nearby USSR chemical weapons testing and is full of fertilizers and pesticides from the same mass agricultural practices responsible for draining the Aral Sea. Between the 1960s and 1990s, the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers that flowed from the mountains to supply the lake were redirected to irrigate 7 million hectares (1.7 million acres) of cotton fields for the Soviet Union. The massive-scale irrigation that's continued since in various forms rapidly reduced the lake, eventually splitting it into two slithers, and connecting its hundreds of islands to their surrounding banks. Salinity concentrations in the remaining water increased to levels higher than the ocean, destroying most of the native life within and collapsing the local ecosystem. This destroyed the livelihoods of many people, as illustrated by the rusted fishing boats now strewn across the arid sands. Exposure to the dust has been linked to health issues in adults and children in the region, including increased congenital defects. In an effort to contain the toxic dust, regional governments have been working on vegetating the former lakebed, with local scientists searching for plants hardy enough to tolerate the salty soil. The EU and USAid have recently offered assistance for this mass undertaking, but this is no longer assured. What's happened to the Aral Sea isn't just some distant tragedy the rest of the world can afford to ignore, as the same circumstances are being repeated globally. Lakes and other land-based water systems in Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Australia, and the US are all shrinking due to industrialized agricultural and climate pressures. The Aral Sea is a stark warning of the deadly and complex consequences of failing to prioritize enough water for the local environment. Changes in a Greenland Glacier Hid a Grim Truth of Ice Sheet's Destruction LA Coast Community Accelerates Towards Pacific Amid Increasing Landslides Third of Earth's Landmass Could Soon Be Too Hot For Over 60s
