Applicability of combined drought index in drought analysis over North Eastern Kenya

Droughts are hindrances to economic and social developments in many parts of the world, especially in developing nations like Kenya. In North Eastern Kenya (NEK), drought is very prevalent. The communities in the region are mainly dependent on animal farming, and drought occurrence leads to great socioeconomic setback. Drought indices used in most studies consider rainfall as the only parameter for assessing drought occurrences. This study analyzes drought in NEK using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and the Combined Drought Index (CDI) using rainfall and temperature values and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index values for the period 1980–2010. The results of the two indices show significant correlation. However, CDI is preferred in the analysis of the drought compared to the SPI as it gives drought in more detail, showing extreme, severe, moderate and mild. The study recommends the use of the two methods independently since they give similar results and further recommends trial in other parts of the country affected by drought

The Role of Kenya Meteorological Service in Weather Early Warning in Kenya

Early warning in weather forecasting entails provision of timely and effective weather information that allows individuals, organisations, or communities exposed to likely weather hazards to take action that avoids or reduces their exposure to risks. Various sectors have developed different ways to mitigate the effects of climate anomalies. The study reviews the existing monitoring and response structures, and communications flow channels of weather data at different levels, focusing on the role of Kenya Meteorological Service (KMS). The methodology employed was literature review of various documents. The study argues that early warning and weather information communication are essential elements for effective governance of weather risks through a well-developed warning system. At the end, the study recommends strengthening the existing structures with respect to weather monitoring, processing, and dissemination of weather products to end users

Meteorological Drought Variability over Africa from Multisource Datasets

This study analyses the spatiotemporal variability of meteorological drought over Africa and its nine climate subregions from an ensemble of 19 multisource datasets (gauge-based, satellite-based and reanalysis) over the period 1983–2014. The standardized precipitation index (SPI) is used to represent drought on a 3-month scale. We analyse various drought characteristics (duration, events, frequency, intensity, and severity) for all drought months, and moderate, severe, and extreme drought conditions. The results show that drought occurs across the continent, with the equatorial regions displaying more negative SPI values, especially for moderate and severe droughts. On the other hand, Eastern Sahara and Western Southern Africa portray less negative SPI values. The study also reveals that extreme drought months have the largest interannual variability, followed by all drought months and severe drought months. The trend analysis of SPI shows a significantly increasing trend in drought episodes over most regions of Africa, especially tropical areas. Drought characteristics vary greatly across different regions of Africa, with some areas experiencing longer and more severe droughts than others. The equatorial region has the highest number of drought events, with longer durations for severe and extreme drought months. The Eastern Sahara region has a low number of drought events but with longer durations for moderate, severe, and extreme drought months, leading to an overall higher drought severity over the area. In contrast, Western Southern Africa and Madagascar display a consistently low drought severity for all categories. The study demonstrates the importance of conducting drought analysis for different drought levels instead of using all drought months. Drought management and adaptation strategies need to enhance community resilience to changing drought situations and consider drought variability in order to mitigate different impacts of drought across the continent