Drought In Kenya Essay

Improved Essays
DROUGHT ADAPTATIONS IN KENYA
INTRODUCTION
The Lancet commission on Health and Climate change June 2015 list four direct effect of climate change; ’Increase heat stress, floods, drought and increased frequency of intense storms”( The Lancet, 2015).
Who. int (2015) describes drought as a period in the climate cycle caused by lack of rainfall that result in lack of water that then leads to food shortages. The populations mostly affected by this climate induced disaster are; people of low social economic back ground, the elderly, children and the disabled.
This assay looks at some of the adaptation taken in Kenya in response to drought. In 2014 the Government of Kenya estimated 1.6 million people were affected by drought due to lack of rain between March and May 2014 (ReliefWeb, 2015). The adaptations covered in this essay are; Sustainable Land Management, Agro-Pastoralist Adaptation, Research and Genetics and Government and NGO involvement.
ADAPTATION OF DROUGHT
Sustainable Land management
80% of the land mass in Kenya is occupied by dryland. This dry land contributes to the economy of Kenya because Kenya relies on its land for crops for food and export, Livestock and wildlife which is also a major economic boost for Kenya. Dryland ecosystem is highly affected by climate and thus any change can lead to demographic pressure
…show more content…
This has led to many deaths and raids that have left the community with lack of food from their livestock. This conflict has had a major impact not only on the health of the community but also education. The constant raids have led to school and health facilities closer. Politics has played a role in facilitating this conflict as each community is straggling for control over power of resources. The community with the most resource has better livestock and thus become more prosperous (Eriksen and Lind,

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    In the online webpage “Facts: Effects”, Holly Shaftel confirms “Effects that scientists had predicted in the past would result from global climate change are now occurring: loss of sea ice, accelerated sea level rise and longer, more intense heat waves” by elaborating the effects of excessive release of greenhouse gases, resulting from various human activities, towards the environment, thus affecting the current ecosystem(Facts:Effects). She supports this claim by first stating that, according to various data collected on greenhouse gas concentration by the intergovernmental panel on climate change(IPCC), “Summer temperatures are projected to continue rising, and a reduction of soil moisture…” and thus result in severe droughts(Facts:Effects).…

    • 454 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Climate change causes changes in temperatures and rain that affect the agriculture. But the effect of the increase or decrease in temperature and rainfall in the agriculture depend on the region or location. The location dictates the soil fertility, therefore the extreme weather such as the heat waves, droughts, strong winds and heavy rains affecting the crop growth varies by region. Droughts in the Great Plains will stress the agriculture by the increase in temperature, less groundwater and flooding. In the Southwest the drought, water shortages, fire and floods will affect the soil decreasing the crops production.…

    • 251 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Not only has climate change worsened the drought situation in sub-Saharan Africa and Australia, but also population growth has played an important role. In sub-Saharan Africa, high population has increased the pressure on water and land demand in agriculture. Even though Africa has abundant water resource, many sub-Saharan African people have faced water shortage issues. Meanwhile, over-farming has resulted in soil depletion and has exacerbated poor harvest. However, the main population issue in Australia has been rural demographic shifts.…

    • 220 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    ATTENTION GETTER: About how often did you see rain? STATE THESIS & MAIN POINTS: The causes of the drought in California led to serious effect nowadays; having the expensive costs of water brings people to the shortage of water. Body I. MAIN POINT:…

    • 441 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The intense famines in Africa are the result of many interwoven factors, but is the final straw the lack of water? It seems that the areas that can grow crops are over-farmed, and without heat-resistant seeds and irrigation the crops that do survive are not enough. Multiple years of crop failure are the foreshadowing of famine, pulling thousands already living in poverty into the cycle of famine, illness and death. Corrupt governments misuse donated funds to support military and other ventures, keeping the growing population in poverty. Many countries even rely on foreign food donations to support their people.…

    • 595 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    African Savanna Biome

    • 1443 Words
    • 6 Pages

    General Overview Description: The central African savanna biome is a tropical grassland characterized by its thick grassy plains and few dispersed trees that do not have a high enough tree density to form a closed canopy. Consequently, this allows for sunlight to reach the ground, supporting a thick and healthy layer of plantlife consisting primarily of grass. It is also characterized by its seasonal availability in water as a large majority of its rainfall is subject to one season. Climate: The central african savanna receives a wet-dry tropical climate, with one distinct wet season during the summer and one dry season in the winter.…

    • 1443 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Drought affects society through multiple facets, especially through its ability to create fluctuating economies due to its affect on agriculture, electricity, and water usage, as well as the ways these processes are developed. When droughts turn dangerous, conservation is key, but this conservation is usually expensive. Virtually everyone is affected, even timber workers, as drought leads to increased chances of wildfires, causing wood companies lose money. Water is used in everyone's daily lives, so its essential that we conserve it for the sake of the environment and in turn the economy, as raised water and electricity bills ravages homes and businesses. Drought especially highlights the procurement of water sources, agricultural difficulties,…

    • 973 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The dangers of a drought How to manage through a drought There are multiple different types of climate variation that affect the earth, but one that affects all the living is drought. The definition of drought is a long period of dry weather. Most of us are unprepared for a period of drought. Although we all are aware that drought is an uncontrollable disaster, how can man manage the divesting outcome that a drought has caused?…

    • 653 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Alabama Drought Crisis

    • 918 Words
    • 4 Pages

    For many years the emphasis of drought strategies in the region has been on short-term mitigation measures rather than long-term prevention incentive. In the past few years new policies have been emerging in which preparedness, rehabilitation, prevention and planning are the key elements. Current drought management strategies are attempting to treat droughts as a potentially serious disaster. These management cycles also intend to integrate program management cycles aimed at mitigation and prevention. States such as Alabama develop strategies around a range of reforms that are meant to improve people's quality of life in various areas such as equal health care to improve governance and inclusive economic growth after a drought.…

    • 918 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The drought in California has effected many people over the past year. The whole state is hurting and yearning for water but there is one specific group of living things, animals and people, who are suffering the most. The farmers growing California food and the farm animals providing our food are suffering the most during this horrific drought. California’s farmers are in desperate need to keep crops alive and supply their livestock with adequate amounts of water. California farmland has not been saturated enough to sustain crops any more and this is causing a decrease in amounts of produce produced and shipped off to other states.…

    • 587 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Many communities who have little care and knowledge about the drought will not be able to show resilience under the stress and problems they may encounter. They will not know the proper techniques and plans to implement to help the affected people. Those who are educated on the current status and issues on the drought will be better able to adapt and live under the different circumstances. Many communities have taken initiative to better cope and protect the livelihoods of their residents. For example, the San Luis Obispo county has created a task force in which they have declared a drought emergency.…

    • 847 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Drought in California A drought is a period of abnormally low rainfall. This is the situation central california is suffering at the moment. This is very alarming considering that a lot of crops are grown in the central valley for example cotton, cotton is not a plant we eat but we need it to make clothes. If this continues thousands of people are going to lose their jobs and food is going to go up in price.…

    • 475 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Weather determines the future for some people in Africa due to having only a farm as their only security. Desertification can be indicated by obvious patterns of weather but a more important indicator on the geography of the land is determined but what humans and wildlife are doing to that area. In study published by the Taylor and Francis group they are, “‘reduced area of water bodies’, ‘increased run-off’, ‘decreased infiltration’, ‘accelerated soil erosion and sedimentation’, and ‘deteriorated ground-water resources’” (Symeonakis, 2004) With this being said this tells us that over all water is getting more difficult to obtain because all of the listed factors are due…

    • 1549 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When a country goes completely from green to drought caused by industrializing, it loses its rescores due to deforestation, where communities depend on the resources for living, which then leads to poverty and violence. Wangari Maathai, in her memoir, “Unbowed” was telling the effects of deforestation and its horrible chain reaction in Kenya through her teary eyes. She was born in Kenya in 1940, where the colonization and industrialization of Britain caused violence and corruption, which impacted her culture. Wangari Maathai was well-aware of the surroundings and her country issues due to the exposure of multiple different cultures that she interacted with, in which got her a point of view of her country issues. Furthermore, she became ambitious…

    • 1131 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Sahara Desert Essay

    • 1180 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Can you imagine living in the world’s largest and hottest desert? The Sahara Desert is the world’s largest and hottest desert. The Sahel lies on the southern border of the Sahara. This region receives more rain than the Sahara, but it often suffers from long periods of drought. Most of Sahel’s land is not appropriate for growing crops, which gave a hard time to the farmers living there.…

    • 1180 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays