World Faces Deadliest Droughts Yet — UN Raises Alarm

The world is grappling with the worst drought in recorded history, driven by climate change and environmental degradation, according to a new United Nations report.

Published by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the US National Drought Mitigation Centre (NDMC), and the International Drought Resilience Alliance (IDRA), the report examines drought impacts from 2023 to 2025, revealing widespread devastation to lives, economies, and ecosystems.

In eastern and southern Africa, an estimated 90 million people are facing acute hunger. In Zimbabwe alone, the 2024 corn harvest dropped by 70 per cent, maize prices doubled, and 9,000 cattle died. In Somalia, drought-linked hunger claimed 43,000 lives in 2022, and as of early 2025, one in four Somalis faced crisis-level food insecurity.

Drought has also crippled energy systems. In Zambia, the Zambezi River’s water level plunged to 20 percent of its average in April 2025, slashing the Kariba Dam’s hydroelectric capacity to just 7 percent and triggering 21-hour daily blackouts.

“Drought is a silent killer. It creeps in, drains resources, and devastates lives in slow motion. Its scars run deep,” said Ibrahim Thiaw, executive secretary of UNCCD.

The impacts extend far beyond Africa. In Spain, olive production halved in 2023 due to prolonged drought. In Türkiye, groundwater depletion is causing sinkholes. In the Amazon, low river levels have led to mass fish deaths and disrupted transport.

“This is a slow-moving global catastrophe, the worst I’ve ever seen,” said Mark Svoboda, NDMC director and report co-author. “No country, regardless of wealth or capacity, can afford to be complacent.”

The report urges urgent investment in early warning systems, climate-resilient infrastructure, and nature-based solutions, warning that drought, if unchecked, could unravel societies globally.