EUROCLIMA+ is working to mitigate drought in Ecuador through the project "Strengthening national and regional drought and flood risk monitoring and management systems in the context of climate change in Andean countries
Quito, Ecuador. December 14, 2020. The effects of climate change are increasingly evident throughout the world. Drought is a progressive natural phenomenon that generates population displacements, suspensions of electricity service, decreases in productivity, forest fires, and water rationing, among other effects.
In the case of Ecuador, the areas most affected by this phenomenon are located in the southwestern, central-western coastal, and central regions of the Ecuadorian highlands.
In view of this reality, the country's government - through the National Risk and Emergency Management Service (SNGR), the Ministry of the Environment and Water (MAAE) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) - is working on the preparation of the National Drought Plan (PNS).
This is a climate governance tool that will define the appropriate guidelines for an effective response to this type of disaster, through strategies related to capacity building and intervention at all levels: national, sub-national, community and family.
This participation integrates the public and private sectors and social, cultural and ethnic group collectives and focuses them on providing a unified response to needs.
"The National Risk and Emergency Management Service will work together with the local decentralised autonomous governments in the areas that must face this threat, generating contingency plans and preparing the communities. Mainly those whose livelihoods are based on agricultural activities," explained Andrea Valeria Hermenejildo De la A, Undersecretary for Information Management and Risk Analysis.
The team of the International Centre for Research on the El Niño Phenomenon (CIIFEN) is the lead entity in the project "Strengthening national and regional drought and flood risk monitoring and management systems in the context of climate change and desertification in Andean countries". It actively participates by providing technical advice and partnering with the work teams of the institutions involved in the construction of this National Plan.
This project is part of the Disaster Risk Management sector of the EUROCLIMA+ Programme, which is financed by the European Union and implemented by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and the French Development Agency (AFD).
Security for the agricultural sector
The PNS is presented as an instrument to articulate the initiatives carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock in order to alleviate the needs of farmers in Ecuador, especially in those provinces where the occurrence and magnitude of the threat of drought is expected to increase as a result of the effects of climate change.
"Between 2005 and 2015, the agricultural sector had high economic losses due to the impact of the drought. In this sense, the PNS will be a key instrument for monitoring real-time information and generating mapping information related to drought episodes. This complements the AgroSeguro Project, which provides a subsidy to the Agricultural and Livestock Insurance granted by the National Government to support small and medium producers in the country, affected by climate and biological phenomena that cause crop losses," explained Andrés Fernando Pareja Aguirre, Undersecretary of Agricultural Innovation Networks of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of Ecuador.
Agricultural Insurance covers crops that have been affected by different episodes of threats due to drought, flooding, frost, hail, low temperatures, clogging, landslides, excess humidity, uncontrollable diseases, pests, strong winds and fires.
About the sector Disaster risk reduction and management: droughts and floods
The aim of this sector is to promote integrated drought and flood management in a context of climate change.
The actions financed under this sector aim to contribute to disaster risk management, specifically in the case of droughts and floods, taking as a reference the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 and the commitments adopted by countries in their fight against climate change. The projects financed through this component are oriented towards governance, planning and development of regulatory frameworks; information, communication, and early warning; and investment in resilience to the adverse effects of floods and drought.
See the interview with Ecuadoran authorities
About EUROCLIMA+
EUROCLIMA+ is a programme financed by the European Union to promote environmentally sustainable and climate-resilient development in 18 Latin American countries, particularly for the benefit of the most vulnerable populations. The Programme is implemented under the synergistic work of seven agencies: the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the French Development Agency (AFD), the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Expertise France (EF), the International and Ibero-American Foundation for Public Administration and Policy (FIIAPP), the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), and UN Environment.
Contacts
For more information about EUROCLIMA+, contact Alexandra Cortés: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For information about the EUROCLIMA+ Risk Management component, write to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.