The silent catastrophe creeping across the globe isn’t a war or pandemic – it’s drought.
While we’ve had a heatwave during the spring and early summer, parts of Europe are in full on drought under a ‘heat dome.’ But is this just part of the new normal?
Fuelled by climate change and mounting pressure on land and water, the latest UN-backed report paints a devastating picture of how widespread and intense droughts, between 2023 and 2025, have deepened global suffering, wiped out ecosystems and pushed food, water and energy systems to breaking point.
Released today by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the US National Drought Mitigation Center, the report describes a slow-moving disaster that is already reshaping economies, driving instability and creating deadly consequences for people and wildlife.
“Drought is a silent killer. It creeps in, drains resources, and devastates lives in slow motion,” said UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw.
“It is here, escalating, and demands urgent global cooperation. When energy, food, and water all go at once, societies start to unravel.”
Africa
Across Africa, over 90 million people face acute hunger. In Zimbabwe, maize prices doubled after the country lost 70% of its 2024 crop and 9,000 cattle died of thirst.
Zambia plunged into one of the world’s worst energy crises after the Zambezi River fell to 20% of its long-term average, gutting hydropower and causing 21-hour blackouts.
In Somalia, 43,000 people died of drought-linked hunger in 2022.
By early 2025, 4.4 million faced crisis-level food insecurity, with nearly 800,000 at emergency levels.
Human toll
The human toll is staggering. In eastern Africa, child marriages doubled as desperate families sought dowries.
Girls dropped out of school. Hospitals lost power. Families dug holes in dry riverbeds for contaminated water.
“The coping mechanisms we saw during this drought grew increasingly desperate,” said lead author Paula Guastello.
“Girls pulled from school and forced into marriage, hospitals going dark, and families digging holes in dry riverbeds just to find contaminated water – these are signs of severe crisis.”
Global issue
The Mediterranean fared no better. Spain lost half its olive crop after two years of record heat, causing a national olive oil price surge.
Morocco’s sheep numbers plunged 38% compared with 2016, while Turkey saw sinkholes devour farmland as groundwater vanished.
In the Amazon Basin, plunging rivers killed endangered dolphins, stranded communities and left towns without drinking water.
Panama’s drought slowed canal traffic by a third, disrupting global trade and pushing up food prices from the UK to the US.
Wildlife
Animals also suffered. More than 100 elephants died in Zimbabwe’s Hwange Park. Botswana’s hippos were stranded.
Countries even culled wild elephants to feed hungry communities.
The report warns that drought is not just a weather event but a full-blown socio-economic emergency.
With El Niño intensifying climate chaos, and droughts already costing twice as much as two decades ago, the risk of collapse is growing.
Action
The authors call for early warning systems, nature-based solutions, investment in drought resilience, and gender-responsive policies. “The question is not whether this will happen again, but whether we will be better prepared next time,” said Dr Kelly Helm Smith.
UN officials say the clock is ticking. “Proactive drought management is a matter of climate justice, equitable development, and good governance,” said UNCCD Deputy Executive Secretary Andrea Meza.
“Today, around 85% of people affected by drought live in low- and middle-income countries, with women and girls being the hardest hit.”
The world, the report concludes, has the tools and resources to avert disaster – but it needs the political will to act now.
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