Hotter, Drier, Deadlier: Saving Lives and Livelihoods from Compound Drought-Heatwaves in West Africa

Abstract

Global warming is an evidence today, and it affects the whole world. Developing countries, particularly West Africa, are very vulnerable. Not only they have the highest temperatures, but they are unprepared to face heat extremes. The region is prone to extreme heat and this fact is certain with serious impacts on health in general (humanbeings and animals), infrastructures and crop production. Heatwaves account for some of the deadliest disasters on record. Heat is one of the leading weather-related killer in West Africa. But dramatic increases in heat-related deaths are closely associated with the occurrence of hot temperatures and heatwaves, these deaths may not be reported as “heat-related” on death certificates. In West Africa the lack of attention by decision-makers makes it worse, it goes totally unnoticed (death cause could even be attributed to something else). In fact, the Emergency Events Database (EM-DAT) lists no more than two heatwaves in sub-Saharan Africa since the beginning of the 20th century.