Ethiopia Likely to Face Recurrent Climate Shocks – UNDRR

By Xinhua 

December 23, 2023

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) said recurrent climate change-induced shocks underscore the need for greater investments in Ethiopia.

The UNDRR said in a press statement issued late Thursday that the East African country is severely affected by climate-related hazards. Since 2020, the country has faced prolonged drought resulting from consecutive failed rainy seasons, generally happening in the northern, southeastern, and southern parts of Ethiopia.

It said the current drought that impacted different parts of Ethiopia affected about 24 million people, including more than 11 million people who need food assistance.

It also noted the impact of recent deadly flooding incidents, as Ethiopian authorities reported at least 57 fatalities due to flooding and landslides, with more than 1.5 million people affected and over 600,000 displaced across seven of Ethiopia’s 12 regions.

“These recurrent shocks underscore the need for greater investments in Ethiopia’s early warning, prevention and risk reduction systems to avoid and minimize impacts on people, their assets, social services and critical infrastructure,” the UNDRR said. Noting Ethiopia as one of the 30 particularly at-risk countries identified by the Early Warnings for All Initiative, it said the country is putting into action its Roadmap for Multi-hazard, Impact-based Early Warning and Early Action System (2023-2030).

As part of the ongoing efforts to create resilience against climate change-induced shocks, the UNDRR has recently partnered with the Ethiopian Disaster Risk Management Commission (EDRMC) and the UN country team in the country, gathering more than 60 technical experts from across 25 organizations and 12 regions to chart the next phase of roadmap implementation.

The meeting explored how better use of risk data can further strengthen national, sub-national and community-based early warning systems. The meeting reviewed insights from previous investments in community-based disaster risk profiles and explored opportunities to improve existing practices in disaster risk profiling, it said.