TY - JOUR
T1 - Review of Meteorological Drought in Africa
T2 - Historical Trends, Impacts, Mitigation Measures, and Prospects
AU - Ayugi, Brian
AU - Eresanya, Emmanuel Olaoluwa
AU - Onyango, Augustine Omondi
AU - Ogou, Faustin Katchele
AU - Okoro, Eucharia Chidinma
AU - Okoye, Charles Obinwanne
AU - Anoruo, Chukwuma Moses
AU - Dike, Victor Nnamdi
AU - Ashiru, Olusola Raheemat
AU - Daramola, Mojolaoluwa Toluwalase
AU - Mumo, Richard
AU - Ongoma, Victor
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Organization of African Academic Doctors (OAAD) and a grant from the Postdoctoral Research Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Grant no. 2191012100301).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
PY - 2022/3/12
Y1 - 2022/3/12
N2 - This review study examines the state of meteorological drought over Africa, focusing on historical trends, impacts, mitigation strategies, and future prospects. Relevant meteorological drought-related articles were systematically sourced from credible bibliographic databases covering African subregions in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries (i.e. from 1950 to 2021), using suitable keywords. Past studies show evidence of the occurrence of extreme drought events across the continent. The underlying mechanisms are mostly attributed to complex interactions of dynamical and thermodynamical mechanisms. The resultant impact is evidenced in the decline of agricultural activities and water resources and the environmental degradation across all subregions. Projected changes show recovery from drought events in the west/east African domain, while the south and north regions indicate a tendency for increasing drought characteristics. The apparent intricate link between the continent’s development and climate variability, including the reoccurrence of drought events, calls for paradigm shifts in policy direction. Key resources meant for the infrastructural and technological growth of the economy are being diverted to develop coping mechanisms to adapt to climate change effects, which are changing. Efficient service delivery to drought-prone hotspots, strengthening of drought monitoring, forecasting, early warning, and response systems, and improved research on the combined effects of anthropogenic activities and changes in climate systems are valuable to practitioners, researchers, and policymakers regarding drought management in Africa today and in the future.
AB - This review study examines the state of meteorological drought over Africa, focusing on historical trends, impacts, mitigation strategies, and future prospects. Relevant meteorological drought-related articles were systematically sourced from credible bibliographic databases covering African subregions in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries (i.e. from 1950 to 2021), using suitable keywords. Past studies show evidence of the occurrence of extreme drought events across the continent. The underlying mechanisms are mostly attributed to complex interactions of dynamical and thermodynamical mechanisms. The resultant impact is evidenced in the decline of agricultural activities and water resources and the environmental degradation across all subregions. Projected changes show recovery from drought events in the west/east African domain, while the south and north regions indicate a tendency for increasing drought characteristics. The apparent intricate link between the continent’s development and climate variability, including the reoccurrence of drought events, calls for paradigm shifts in policy direction. Key resources meant for the infrastructural and technological growth of the economy are being diverted to develop coping mechanisms to adapt to climate change effects, which are changing. Efficient service delivery to drought-prone hotspots, strengthening of drought monitoring, forecasting, early warning, and response systems, and improved research on the combined effects of anthropogenic activities and changes in climate systems are valuable to practitioners, researchers, and policymakers regarding drought management in Africa today and in the future.
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U2 - 10.1007/s00024-022-02988-z
DO - 10.1007/s00024-022-02988-z
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85126201202
SN - 0033-4553
VL - 179
SP - 1365
EP - 1386
JO - Pure and Applied Geophysics
JF - Pure and Applied Geophysics
IS - 4
ER -
