As climate change intensifies, it is imperative for policymakers to address the escalating loss and damage it inflicts on vulnerable communities in developing countries. In India's Maharashtra state, these impacts are forcing rural families into life-altering decisions and migrations to work in sugarcane fields, where exploitative practices by contractors, including …
In January 2017, members of the Tamil Nadu Federation of Women Farmers’ Rights, a unit of Mahila Kisan Adhikar Manch (MAKAAM), conducted a field study to document the impact of the drought-induced rural distress on woman farmers. The report describes the situation in Tamil Nadu as a “famine”. Some contributing …
The “Pacific Islands Meteorological Services in Action” Compendium which was compiled by SPREP-FINPAC Project in partnership with World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Climate and Oceans Support Programme for the Pacific (COSPPac) and Environment and Climate Change Canada is a result of a first “writeshop” for climate services in the Pacific. This …
The Kenyan ministry of agriculture and leading insurance companies on Monday announced 2.5-million-U.S.-dollar compensation for 12,000 pastoral households affected by drought in six counties. Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Willy Bett said the compensation, embedded in the Kenya Livestock Insurance Program (KLIP), will be completed in February to …
THE United States Agency for International Development (USAID) donated N$49 million for drought assistance in Namibia. Of this amount, N$21 million will be used to buy eight water tanker trucks and promote community and school sanitation, while the the rest will be for drought relief. The relief will be extended …
It is the lament of a parched land, where women cry for thirsty children, and farmers’ hope is spent. In Madagascar, the island nation off the southeastern coast of Africa, a grim cycle has set in. Rains arrive late and leave early in the African country most exposed to climate …
The party unveiled a water plan yesterday to be presented to the city's leaders. It proposed a three-pronged approach: "Using what we've got, saving what we've got and appreciating what we've got." This would involve rainwater harvesting in informal settlements, rethinking stormwater drainage systems, encouraging people to save water and …
Three-month old Abshir, pictured at Garowe General Hospital in Puntland, Somalia, is suffering from malnutrition-related complications pictures by: Tom Pilston/Save the Children Somalia is at “tipping point” and a famine could be declared in a matter of weeks, Save the Children has warned. An intensifying food crisis in the Horn …
Joyce Matheka’s one acre farm located in Makueni County in lower-eastern Kenya was a spectacle to behold on Friday thanks to a lush green foliage that announced a bumper harvest in the near future. The middle-aged mother of eight defied cynical voices to experiment with a new and improved maize …
The Kenya Livestock Insurance Programme (KLIP) will pay pastoralists in six counties affected by drought Sh214 million to cover their herd losses. Announcing the payout plan Monday, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Willy Bett said 12,000 pastoral households, mainly from arid and semi-arid areas, will benefit. The insurance programme, which was initiated …
Close to 3 million Kenyans are in need of relief assistance, official said. The Secretary of Communication and State House Spokesperson, Mr Manoah Esipisu, in his weekly address to the media in Nairobi on Sunday, said the number had doubled from 1.3 million in August 2016. Mr Esipisu attributed the …
Farmers at Gcabayi and Amazon A and B villages, under Chief Bekezela Sibasa, are among those who have ventured into drought mitigation programmes implemented through Environment Africa, Dabani Trust and Practical Action, funded by Zimbabwe Project Trust (Zimpro) and Trocaire. The farmers told NewsDay Weekender during a media tour organised …
Kenya intends to raise new funds from multilateral donors and local corporations to support humanitarian assistance for an estimated 3 million people affected by the current drought, officials said on Thursday. Head of Civil Service Joseph Kinyua said the government was finalizing discussions with development partners, relief agencies and private …
CAPE TOWN - The City of Cape Town’s water crisis warning on electronic freeway signboards has gone live, indicating how much water the metro has left at current consumption rates. This is an effort to strengthen the warning that saving water is the best contingency measure before and during a …
DURBAN – eThekwini metro municipality residents are being punished because of poor water management, the Democratic Alliance in KwaZulu-Natal said on Sunday. “It cannot be that a city that receives 1,009mm in rain annually cannot find a solution to its water shortages,” DA provincial leader Zwakele Mncwango told journalists at …
CAPE TOWN - The Western Cape government is exploring different options to pump up water supplies. Dam levels in the province are at their lowest in three decades. Officials say Cape Town has about 135 days' worth of usable water. The City plans to name and shame residents who violate …
Baidoa, Somalia - Four-year-old Safia Adan lies in Baidoa Regional Hospital in southern Somalia with a tube through her nose. She is suffering from severe malnutrition and dehydration. At her side her worried grandmother looks up to explain that Safia first became sick after drinking water from the local well. …
More than Sh24 billion is needed to cater for those areas worst-hit by drought, the government announced yesterday. State House spokesperson Manoah Esipisu (pictured) said the government has secured Sh7.1 billion and spent Sh5.4 billion in phase one of the drought intervention that ended last month. He said Sh11.6 billion …
Drought in East Africa has sent prices of staples such as maize and sorghum soaring, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization said late Tuesday, warning that a sharp increase in food prices could lead to renewed hunger in the region. Prices of staple cereals have doubled in some markets, reaching …
The U.N. humanitarian appeal for 2017 for Somalia is $864 million to provide assistance to 3.9 million people. But additional funds are needed to cope with the worsening situation, and last month, the U.N. World Food Program launched a $26 million plan to respond to the drought. Globally, the famine …
Residents offload relief food after it was delivered to Lamuria in Nyeri County. Residents urged the Government to buy some of their livestock to ensure that the animals do not die of starvation. [Photo: Kibata Kihu/Standard] The Government has approved Sh7.4 billion to be spent on the second phase of …
