MBABANE – Fourteen local urban authorities across Eswatini will today receive tailored Drought Management Plans to strengthen their preparedness for climate shocks.
The plans are being launched at the Hilton Garden Inn under a World Bank-funded water and sanitation initiative aimed at helping towns and cities anticipate, prepare for and recover from severe dry spells.
The initiative focuses on strengthening institutional coordination, early warning systems and risk planning for drought.
Speaking during the launch, National Disaster Management Agency (NDRMA) Project Manager Gcebile Dlamini said the project’s Sub-component 1.3, although small, was critical to improving drought preparedness.
“We have a small component but a very important component in the project. It looks at improved preparedness and planning to strengthen institutional coordination and policy planning for drought risks,” she said.
Dlamini said the initiative combines scientific data with community participation to identify and monitor climate risks before they develop into crises.
“Another aim of the component is to improve early warning systems where we monitor droughts to support timely action through your Composite Drought Index (CDI),” she said.
She said the programme also involved ground-truthing, using trained volunteers referred to as citizen scientists, to verify information gathered through scientific monitoring.
The newly developed drought profiles assess risks associated with four major hazards, while identifying vulnerable urban populations, their exposure and existing coping mechanisms.
According to Dlamini, the plans will help local authorities move away from responding to drought only after it becomes a crisis towards proactive, long-term water security planning.
The plans provide local authorities with data-driven tools to identify specific drought risks, protect public water supplies and safeguard critical municipal infrastructure.
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