IR-PREP - Regional El Niño Preparedness for South Africa

This Operation expired in February 2016.

The Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF) has forecasted a high likelihood of an El Niño season for the 2015/16 cropping season. This is generally characterised by normal-to-below normal rainfall across the southern half of SADC region for the next cropping season. This El Niño event which was officially declared in March 2015, is forecasted to remain active and to peak from the last quarter of 2015 to the first quarter of 2016, which coincides with the peak of the agricultural season in this region.

Under such circumstances, historically, crop production is adversely affected.  This comes against the backdrop of a poor 2014/15 agricultural season which resulted in the current food deficit situation in countries such as Malawi, Zimbabwe and Madagascar. Given these conditions, the region is likely to face very serious food security challenges in the coming lean season and next year’s harvest.

This is a regional IR-PREP that will include activities in Madagascar, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, DRC, Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland and will be completed by three additional IR-Preps specific to Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi. The duration of this project will be for 3 months (9 November, 2015 - 8 February 2016).