Drought Archives

Penitents bear a float with a statue known as the 'Abuelo de Jaen' during a procession in Jaen to make the rain fall

World

Historic drought sees Spaniards pray for rain

Drought is so severe in parts of Spain that thousands of people are invoking the heavens desperate for rain. On Monday, parishioners in the...

AFPMay 2, 2023

Somali refugee children roll water containers as they bring them back to their makeshift shelter in the Dadaab refugee camp

World

Global warming made Horn of Africa drought possible: report

A devastating drought that has struck the Horn of Africa could not have occurred without global warming, according to a new report released Thursday from...

AFPApril 27, 2023

The soil is dry and dusty in Tunisia, a small country that is expected to endure worsening water scarcity as climate change intensifies

World

Tunisia drought threatens ‘catastrophic’ grain harvest

A severe drought in North Africa has left Tunisian farmers bracing for a catastrophically poor harvest, imperilling food security in the cash-strapped country. At...

AFPApril 12, 2023

Rainfall this season has been half the usual amount

World

Historic drought adds to Argentina’s economic woes

Argentina’s already fragile economy is now taking a beating from nature, as the worst drought in almost 100 years decimates critical soy, wheat and...

AFPApril 5, 2023

World

Humanity must chart new course on water use: UN chief

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday delivered an urgent call for the world to modify and safeguard water resources to avert conflict and ensure...

AFPMarch 24, 2023

There is no mains water in Rio Verde Foothills, Arizona, and now the neighbouring city of Scottsdale has stopped selling it to tanker drivers

World

Paper plates and short showers: life with no water in Arizona

With its cactus-filled garden and breathtaking views of the rocky peaks of the Arizona desert, Wendy and Vance Walker’s home in the Rio Verde...

AFPMarch 20, 2023

Sprinklers water a lettuce field in California's Imperial Valley, a vital part of America's huge agricultural sector, in February 2023

Business

California’s desert farmers defend their river rights

A blanket of crops covers the floor of the Imperial Valley in southern California, a patchwork of vibrant greens given life by the Colorado...

AFPMarch 20, 2023

A health worker takes an arm measurement, a benchmark of malnutrition, at a Save the Children mobile clinic near Gode, Ethiopia

World

Nearly 130,000 facing starvation in Horn of Africa: WHO

Nearly 130,000 people in the Greater Horn of Africa are “staring death in the eyes” from catastrophic hunger, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned...

AFPMarch 10, 2023