LONDON, U.K. (Thomson Reuters Foundation) — At least 10 million poor people face hunger this year and next because of droughts and erratic rain, Oxfam has warned.
The bad weather is linked to record global temperatures and an expected “super” version of the evolving El Nino weather pattern.
In Ethiopia, 4.5 million people need food aid because El Nino and long-term climate change have made the rainy season more un-predictable, according to United Nations agencies.
El Nino, caused by Pacific Ocean warming, leads to dry weather in some parts of the world and causes floods in others.
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This year, the phenomenon is expected to peak between October and January and could turn into one of the strongest on record.
A scorching drought has already ravaged crops in southern Africa. South Africa’s key corn crop has fallen by a third, and poor yields are expected to continue.
In neighbouring Zimbabwe, where the corn harvest is 35 percent below average, the government blamed the drought-stricken farm sector for a halving of its economic growth forecast in July.
Harvests in Central America have fallen by as much as 60 percent for corn and 80 percent for beans be-cause of prolonged dry spells linked to El Nino, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.
