New study calls for radical rethink on droughts

Record-breaking droughts are becoming a new normal for billions of people, yet few countries are taking the threat seriously, researchers warned in a global snapshot of the scourge on this week.

Paris –

The launch of the World Drought Atlas comes as governments convene in Saudi Arabia for the COP16 summit on land degradation and desertification.

Droughts are being made worse by human-caused climate change and longer and harsher dry spells can contribute to the depletion of fertile soils as they gradually turn arid.

The EU and UN, which backed the research, said droughts were "one of the world's most costly and deadly hazards" and the report should serve "as an urgent wake-up call for world leaders".

Drought costs the world more than $300 billion (about R5.4 billion) each year, the United Nations warned yesterday in a report published on the second day of the talks. Fuelled by "human destruction of the environment", drought is projected to affect 75% of the world's population by 2050, the report cautioned.