Farmer's Weekly

Is East Africa’s drought the worst in recent history?

Large areas of Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya are currently in the grip of a severe drought. An estimated 16,7 million people face acute food insecurity. That’s more than the combined populations of Austria and Switzerland.

Four consecutive rainy seasons have now failed since late 2020, a climatic event not seen in at least 40 years. This meteorological drought has resulted in a loss of soil moisture, caused waterways to dry up, and led to the death of millions of head of livestock.

The Horn of Africa experiences two rainy seasons per year. The timing varies across the region, but rains broadly fall from March to May (the ‘long rains’) and from September

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