Current Situation

Zambia is currently facing severe drought due to the ongoing effects of El Niño. The start of the rainfall season (October – December) was delayed and characterized by drier-than-average conditions over most of the country, except for the northern areas, which account for only 42% of the country’s maize production.

Extremely dry conditions have predominated 84 out of 116 districts in Western, North-Western, Copperbelt, Southern, Lusaka, Central and Eastern provinces. These regions received less than 50% of the usual annual rainfall amounts.

The drought has affected agrifood systems (crops, livestock, fisheries, forestry )and natural resources (vegetation, water, soil, wildlife) including other sectors such as education, sanitation labour and energy. The impact of the El – Niño induced drought is highlighted as the worst that the country has experienced with February being the driest and hottest month on record since 1981.

This is driving food and nutrition insecurity with indications of increased severity and prevalence, evidenced by the increase of food insecure people compared to the 2023 vulnerability assessment results.