Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Information is central to the drought cycle, since action must be triggered by the
fi ndings from constant monitoring of drought conditions. Data is collected and
analysed every month. The extent to which drought conditions deviate from the
norm, against a common set of economic, environmental and nutritional indicators,
determines the particular 'stage' a drought has reached. The stages used in Kenya
are normal, alert, alarm, emergency and recovery.
Different activities are required at each of these stages for different livelihood
systems. These are set out, by sector, in the NDMA's drought response manual
(NDMA 2010 ). More detailed scenarios for the implementation of these activities
are contained in drought contingency plans. Since contingency planning is neces-
sarily based on assumptions, rapid assessments ensure that activities are fi ne-tuned.
Contingency plans will in due course be fi nanced by the NDCF. This will be a multi-
donor facility that prioritises investments at the alert and alarm stages, which cur-
rently receive insuffi cient attention. Planning for the Fund is at an advanced stage,
but until it is operational the drought management system will remain weak, par-
ticularly in the critical early stages when there may be no obvious signs of stress to
outsiders but when action can be most effective.
While the drought cycle provides a framework for dealing with each successive
drought in turn, it does not of itself address the underlying vulnerability of commu-
nities to drought and climate change. It must therefore be complemented by other
actions taken on a continuous basis and regardless of prevailing drought conditions.
These actions include:
￿ Policy, legal and institutional reforms, particularly those that reduce poverty and
inequality in drought-prone areas
￿ Coordination of interventions by government and all stakeholders
￿ Knowledge management and innovation that ensures continuous improvement in
the quality of drought actions
￿ Investments in public goods that strengthen the underlying resilience of com-
munities to shocks
The last of these (investments) are being integrated in Kenya within mainstream
processes of development planning and resource allocation. A chapter on drought
risk management has been included in the Government of Kenya's second Medium
Term Plan for 2013-2017 (NDMA 2013b ). While resilience may be the latest hot
topic, the broad thinking behind it is not new. There has long been an appreciation
that drought vulnerability represents a failure of development, and conversely that
smart development in drylands can strengthen people's capacity to live with, and
adapt to, uncertainty (e.g. see Holden and Ackello-Ogutu 1998 ) (Fig. 11.2 ).
11.4.2
Areas of Innovation
The drought management system has been constantly evolving during the past 30
years, and this adaptation continues today. These are some of the areas where the
NDMA is reviewing its current practice.
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