Droughts are getting worse and hitting more places, a new United Nations (UN) report says. Climate change and heavy use of land and water are making these dry spells more common and more damaging since 2023, according to a press release.
The report comes from the U.S. National Drought Mitigation Center and the UN group working on desertification. It shows how droughts push up poverty and hunger, make energy problems worse, and hurt nature. Ibrahim Thiaw from the UN group said, “Drought is a silent killer. It creeps in, drains resources, and devastates lives in slow motion.” He also said drought is not just a future threat—it’s happening now and getting worse.
Dr. Mark Svoboda, who helped write the report, called this “a slow-moving global catastrophe, the worst I’ve ever seen.” He said the world needs better ways to track how drought affects people, jobs, and the environment. He pointed to Spain, Morocco, and Türkiye as warning signs for other countries. If nothing changes, he said, no country will be safe.
The report uses stories and data from governments, scientists, and the media. It shows the hardest-hit places include Somalia, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Botswana, Namibia, Spain, Morocco, Türkiye, Panama, the Amazon, and Southeast Asia.
The message is clear: drought is already changing lives and hurting economies. The report says the world needs to act now to help people, protect water, and keep food and energy supplies steady.
