A super-charged weather phenomenon will see millions of poor and vulnerable people face hunger and poverty this year and next, as recent record global temperatures, droughts and erratic rains are compounded by what could be the most powerful El Niño on record. Harvests and livelihoods have faltered as drought has taken hold across parts of Africa, the Pacific, Asia, the Caribbean and Central and South America.
This super El Niño is causing real suffering and pushing people who are already at risk from climate change deeper into poverty, loss and extreme vulnerability. The New Zealand Government NZD$2.5 million to support Papua New Guinea and other countries in the Pacific to prepare for and respond to the effects of El Niño. While this funding announcement is a welcome start, it is clear that much more will be needed over coming months as the impacts of this potentially unprecedented El Niño event become greater.
This report builds on Oxfam’s recent briefing, “Entering Uncharted Waters: El Niño and the threat to food security”, and calls on the affected governments, regional bodies and the international community to work together in early response and preparedness in the face of an unfolding crisis.
