El Niño, a climate phenomenon wreaks havoc in Africa – DW – 25/04/2024.

El Niño is a weather phenomenon that occurs irregularly, every two to seven years, when the Pacific Ocean warms and causes global temperatures to rise.

In Africa, El Niño wreaked havoc last year and will continue to wreak havoc in many regions in 2024.

This natural phenomenon results in extreme weather conditions, ranging from devastating floods to prolonged droughts – with Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia and southern Africa being the worst affected areas.

Heavy rains at the beginning of the month caused several dozen victims in Tanzania and Kenya.

According to the humanitarian organization Oxfam, more than 20 million people in southern Africa are facing hunger and malnutrition due to the drought, which is affecting water supplies and crops.

According to the World Food Fund, “the expected production deficit, especially for corn, will intensify food insecurity, raise prices and increase import needs” in the region, while corn represents almost 20% of the calories consumed in the countries of the region.

Lack of financial resources

Countries like Zambia, which is struggling with the worst drought in its history, seriously lack the financial resources to support its population.

Grace Ronoh, a Kenyan environmental activist, believes that “developing countries are unable to prioritize the climate crisis because they need financial resources. However, currently most countries are in debt and will prioritize debt repayment.”

During the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington, Grace Ronoh advocated for the reform of financial institutions to optimize access to funds for climate emergencies.

“We need to remove administrative red tape and reform the World Bank to ensure it is fair.” We also need to remove overly complicated mechanisms that limit increased funding to address climate issues.assures the activist.

On April 16, the donor meeting, organized under the auspices of the United Nations to solve the humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia, certainly made it possible to collect 630 million dollars, but this amount is far from the original goal, which was “a billion dollars .

Strategies for the future

David Gikungu, director of the Kenya Meteorological Department, however, sees the end of the tunnel. He said he expected “the (El Niño) season to end in most areas by the end of May. On the coast, we expect it to be finished around June.”

He adds that cooperation between meteorological services, disaster management agencies and governments is key, stressing that in the case of Kenya, the role of Kenya’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change as a leader is crucial.

“There are offices responsible for monitoring and reporting. We work with other actors involved in disaster management, all of whom have the support of the government.”explains David Gikungu, even if the system did not prevent the deadly consequences of the recent floods.

“Whenever there is flooding, we can expect problems with sewage,” also notes the meteorologist. “When you cook with contaminated water, you put yourself at risk of problems like cholera outbreaks.”

In Zambia and Zimbabwe, water shortages have actually contributed to outbreaks of cholera and other water-related diseases, according to research group World Weather Attribution.