Sahel drought

Sahel drought is a prolonged period of unusually low rainfall across the semi-arid belt south of the Sahara. The severe droughts of the 1970s and 1980s caused widespread crop failure, livestock losses, and famine.

West African monsoon: A seasonal circulation that brings most of West Africa’s annual rainfall from the Gulf of Guinea region. Its northward reach and timing largely determine how much rain reaches the Sahel.
Great Sahel drought: The severe drought that affected the Sahel from the late 1960s through the 1980s. This prolonged episode is the defining modern example of Sahel drought.
Sahel: A semi-arid transition zone south of the Sahara extending across Africa from the Atlantic toward the Red Sea. The drought is defined by rainfall deficits within this broad ecological and climatic region.
Sahel rainfall prediction: The forecasting of seasonal and longer-term rainfall over the Sahel using observations and climate models. Rainfall forecasts can support preparedness, but the region’s variability limits certainty.
Intertropical Convergence Zone: A near-equatorial zone where trade winds converge and rising air produces clouds and rainfall. Its seasonal migration helps set the Sahel’s rainy season and rainfall belt.
Famine: An extreme shortage of food affecting a population, often accompanied by hunger-related illness and death. Rainfall failure contributed to food crises, though drought alone does not determine famine.
Drought: A prolonged period of unusually low water availability relative to a region’s typical conditions. Sahel drought is a regional instance of this broader climate hazard.
Climate change in the Sahel: The observed and projected effects of human-caused climate change on the Sahel’s climate and societies. Warming is clear, while the direction and local distribution of future rainfall changes remain less certain.
Atlantic multidecadal variability: Long-term variations in North Atlantic sea-surface temperatures that affect regional climate patterns. North Atlantic temperature patterns have been linked to changes in Sahel rainfall.
Pastoralism: A livelihood based on raising and moving livestock, often across seasonal grazing lands. Drought reduces pasture and water, threatening herds and pastoral livelihoods.

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