ENGLISH - Annotated Bibliography: Droughts, Climate Change, Africa

This annotated bibliography focuses on the recurring droughts in Africa and their connection to climate change. It compiles research from various journals and articles that investigate the impacts of climate change on drought-prone regions, the reactions of pastoral populations, and drought trends in the 21st century. The annotations summarize, assess, and reflect on sources discussing hydrologic and system dynamics models for drought adaptation, the influence of water assets and historical droughts, the likelihood of rainfall deficits due to greenhouse gas emissions, decadal climate inconsistencies in South Africa, and the socioeconomic impacts of droughts in West Africa. The bibliography also includes research on global drought propensity using drought management indices. The aim is to provide a comprehensive overview of drought patterns in Africa and to highlight the need for innovative policies and climate-smart practices.

SUBJECT: ENGLISH 1
Droughts in Africa
Name of University

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Annotate bibliography
Climate scientists and pastoralists have been studying climate changes in Africa for
centuries. They have been following the movement of people and animals based on the
availability of drinking water. The repeated droughts have destroyed the harvests and livelihoods
in Africa. It is essential to collect information on how Africa is getting impacted by consecutive
seasons of droughts. The higher temperatures are linked to climate change, and the situation in
Africa has already become catastrophic. Millions of people face severe hunger, and the situation
will get much worse. Thus, it is essential to understand the droughts which arête result of a
combination of drivers due to climate variability in day-to-day weather and larger seasonal
patterns. The given paper is based on comprehensive research on the droughts and drought
adaptation policy development in Africa. The research carries information from different
journals and articles that study climate change, human impacts due to the vulnerability of
drought-prone regions. Reactions of pastoral populations in Africa and the trends of drought
tendency in the 21st century are looked into. It is essential to study the patterns of droughts and
devise innovative policies to control the drought-like conditions in Africa. Climate scientists and
practitioners need to stud the role of climate change while the drought events are still unfolding.
Scientific expertise and high-quality observational data are crucial here.
Gies, L., Agusdinata, D. B., & Merwade, V. (2014). Drought adaptation policy development
and assessment in east africa using hydrologic and system dynamics modeling. Natural
Hazards, 74(2), 789-813.
This article emphasizes on how lack of rainfall can impact people, animals, and crop
yields. Frequent droughts are a significant concern for developing countries like Africa. The

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authors discuss the hydrologic and system dynamics model that is focused on the Horn of Africa.
Multiple decades in this region had led to devastating impacts. The article provides useful
information on how hydrologic and system dynamics model can help understand
interdependencies between availability of water, land degradation, and harvests. Innovative
hydrologic systems and policy changes can help analyze the water availability and scarcity in
Africa and negate the adverse impact of water scarcity on natural systems. This article provides
examples and expert opinions that can be used in my project.
Gan, T. Y., Ito, M., Hülsmann, S., Qin, X., Lu, X. X., Liong, S. Y., . . . Koivusalo, H. (2016).
Possible climate change/variability and human impacts, the vulnerability of drought-prone
regions, water resources and capacity building for Africa. Hydrological Sciences Journal,
61(7), 1209-18.
In this article Gan et al. review the influences of water assets and historical droughts in
Africa. The authors use data gained through the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and
Coupled Model Intercomparison to study the vulnerability of the region due to global warming
and drought-prone regions. Their research focuses on aspects like declining precipitation and soil
moisture in the twenty first century that could further add to the effect of droughts. The article
would be useful to add to the research topic on the droughts in Africa. The authors discuss how
satellite data can help build the infrastructure and non-structural solutions for Africa.
Yang, H., & Huntingford, C. (2018). Brief communication: Drought likelihood for east
Africa. Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 18(2), 491-497.
The authors discuss if elevated greenhouse gas emissions can alter the frequency of
extreme rainfall deficits in Africa that has already caused malnutrition and death. Millions of
people across East Africa need food, water, and medical assistance. This article would add useful

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content to the research topic as it inevitably asks the questions of rainfall deficit frequency and
the high greenhouse gases. The authors base their research on data climate models projects and
CHIRPS data-based rainfall product. This article will not form the basis of the research but
would be useful in providing supplementary information.
Malherbe, J., Dieppois, B., Maluleke, P., Staden, M., & Pillay, D. (2016). South African
droughts and decadal variability. Natural Hazards, 80(1), 657–681.
This article explores the historical incidence of droughts over South Africa within the
framework of decadal climate inconsistency. The research focuses on various time scales and
spatial extent of droughts in South Africa. The authors base their discussions on data based on
wavelet analysis of the noteworthy regional climate variation keeping mind the occurrence of
drought. The authors focus on the need to understand the mechanisms that drive variability at the
decadal scale clearly. They emphasize on the significance of these mechanisms in managing the
drought forecasts for the South African and making significant improvements. The utility of this
article lies in the discussion of Inter-Decadal Pacific Oscillation, Pacific Decadal Oscillation, and
ENSO.
Gautier, D., Denis, D., & Locatelli, B. (2016). Impacts of drought and responses of rural
populations in West Africa: a systematic review. WIREs: Climate Change, 7(5), 666–681.
Gautier, Denis, & Locatelli explore the climate variations and droughts in West Africa
and how they have always affected livelihoods as well as the adaptation strategies. The article
will provide useful content to the research topic and allow a better understanding of the
influences of drought in West African populations. The authors point to the need for
understanding multiple socioeconomic and environmental changes for the researchers and
decision makers. They highlight the controversial issues in the research and reviews on drought

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in West Africa and locate the knowledge gaps. They feel that innovative policies and projects are
required for adaptation to climate variation and drought which is a key problem in West Africa.
The article would be used to add further on the subject of the research on how droughts act can
trigger societal, economic and environmental issues.
Chanda, K., & Maity, R. (2017). Assessment of Trend in Global Drought Propensity in the
Twenty-First Century Using Drought Management Index. Water Resources Management,
31(4), 1209–1225.
Chanda & Maity look into the drought trends in the twenty-first century and base their
research on data from two General Circulation Model (GCMs) outputs. They assess the gradual
changes taking place in soil dampness on a multiple years and the future trends in drought
propensity. The article pulls together research on regional analysis to investigate the trends and
provides a variety of viewpoints that are the strength of this research. Regional analysis is done
for Africa, South America, and Asia, Europe, and North America. The article adds to the
understanding of global drought inclination in the future and helps to identify the regions that
would be comparatively more or less prone to droughts in the current century. This is an
insightful article that provides useful information on the topic of research.
References

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Chanda, K., & Maity, R. (2017). Assessment of Trend in Global Drought Propensity in the
Twenty-First Century Using Drought Management Index. Water Resources Management,
31(4), 1209–1225.
Gies, L., Agusdinata, D. B., & Merwade, V. (2014). Drought adaptation policy development and
assessment in east africa using hydrologic and system dynamics modeling. Natural
Hazards, 74(2), 789-813.
Gan, T. Y., Ito, M., Hülsmann, S., Qin, X., Lu, X. X., Liong, S. Y., . . . Koivusalo, H. (2016).
Possible climate change/variability and human impacts, the vulnerability of drought-
prone regions, water resources and capacity building for Africa. Hydrological Sciences
Journal, 61(7), 1209-18.
Gautier, D., Denis, D., & Locatelli, B. (2016). Impacts of drought and responses of rural
populations in West Africa: a systematic review. WIREs: Climate Change, 7(5), 666–
681.
Malherbe, J., Dieppois, B., Maluleke, P., Staden, M., & Pillay, D. (2016). South African
droughts and decadal variability. Natural Hazards, 80(1), 657–681.
Yang, H., & Huntingford, C. (2018). Brief communication: Drought likelihood for east Africa.
Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 18(2), 491-497.