Drought in Nigeria

Long-term drought in Nigeria has led to desertification and scarcity of land on which to grow crops and raise livestock. Farmers and herdsmen have been pushed to venture to new territories to find land for grazing or farming, often resulting in conflict. Here, a woman carries a brick on her head to her town in Plateau State, Nigeria. Over the past two years, violent clashes between herdsmen and farmers have escalated. In 2018, more than 2,000 people were killed. But many people refuse to leave Nigeria’s Plateau State villages, because they call the area their home. When a village is set ablaze, new bricks are made to rebuild the burnt- down houses.

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For Greenpeace Publications and Social Media Outputs. Can be shared with journalists for use connected to extreme weather events. For any other use please contact the photographer directly.

Unique identifier: GP1SUJB4

Type: Image

Shoot date: 18/02/2019

Locations: Africa, Nigeria

Credit line: © Joost Bastmeijer

Ranking: ★★★★★★ (B)

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Extreme Weather Events in Africa

The science is clear: we are living through a climate crisis. Extreme Weather Events (EWE) are on the rise across the African continent. Floods are becoming more difficult to forecast and more severe, claiming more lives and affecting millions every year. Droughts are lasting longer and are threatening food security. Coastlines are being battered by more frequent and intense storms. These are the symptoms of the climate crisis, and there is nothing normal about any of it.

Across the world, people are rising up and demanding decisive action be taken by governments to reverse the climate crisis. Taking the most crucial and obvious steps - immediately implementing a Just Transition to renewable energy and leaving fossil fuels in the ground - can save countless lives. Additional measures like forest protection, minimising single use waste, planning cities better and investing in better data collection are essential as well to monitor and to manage EWEs in the future. This process must be global, but African leaders and communities have the responsibility to push for it.

With coordinated efforts and research behind us, we can force governments to declare a climate emergency. We stand together with the people in frontline communities who will be hardest hit by the climate crisis. We are bold and brave, and countries across Africa will be at the forefront of tackling the climate crisis and ensuring that the future is fair and just for everyone.

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