DROUGHT TOOLBOX

Sept. 13, 2019

Drought Toolbox was officially launched during the 14th Conference of Parties (COP14) to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) held at Greater Noida, India.

About:

The Drought Toolbox can be used by countries to assess drought risks in their regions much in advance. It can accurately evaluate the vulnerability of different geographic regions to drought.
It will also suggest means to mitigate the adverse impact of acute water scarcity.
The toolbox uses 30 parameters, including soil moisture, rainfall data and temperature data of the present and past.
The framework for the toolkit includes three key aspects: (1) ‘Monitoring and Early Warning’ system, (2) ‘Vulnerability and Risk Assessment’ and (3) ‘Risk Mitigation Measures’.

Background:

Few years ago, many countries suggested that the UNCCD come up with a tool to forecast droughts and minimise their socio-economic impact.
Subsequently, UNCCD experts began working on the drought toolbox together with other UN organisations such as the FAO and World Meteorological Organization (WMO), as well as from the University of Nebraska in the US.

Source : The Hindu