Caribbean must prepare for increased drought due to climate change
Barbados – Climate change is expected to increase the intensity and frequency of droughts in the Caribbean, so countries in the region must enhance their capabilities to deal with this and other extreme weather-related challenges to ensure food security and hunger eradication, FAO stresses in a new report.
The Caribbean region faces significant challenges in terms of drought, the FAO report said. The region already experiences drought-like events every year, with low water availability often impacting on agriculture and water resources, and a significant number of bush fires.
The region also experiences intense dry seasons particularly in years when El Niño climate events are present. The impacts of this are usually offset by the next wet season, but wet seasons often end early and dry seasons last longer with the result that annual rainfall is less than expected.
The Caribbean region accounts for seven of the world’s top 36 water-stressed countries, while one of them, Barbados is in the top 10. FAO defines countries like Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, and St. Kitts and Nevis as water-scarce with less than 1000 m3 freshwater resources per capita.
“Drought ranks as the single most common cause of severe food shortages in developing countries, so this is a key issue for Caribbean food security”, said Deep Ford, FAO Regional Coordinator in the Caribbean.
Read more at: Food and Agriculture Organisation