09 Apr 2014   

FACING DROUGHTS - The Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP)

The IPCC finds with high confidence an increased risk of drought-related water and food shortage in Asia[1]. The Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP) aims to address this trend by seeking to build climate resilience, reduce economic and social losses, and alleviate poverty in drought-affected regions around the world. It promotes an integrated approach to drought management that cuts across sectors, disciplines, and institutions and responds to specific regional and national needs.

 
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Global Water Partnership (GWP) established the Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP) in March 2013 at the High-level Meeting on National Drought Policy. The scope of the programme is to contribute to national efforts for poverty alleviation in drought-affected regions of the world through an integrated approach to drought management cutting across sectoral, disciplinary, and institutional jurisdictions. It draws on the cycle of disaster management – focusing on increasing coping capacity and resilience, rather than the traditional approach of crisis management.

 

 

  Realizing that historical record of past climate extremes as a reliable predictor of future droughts is no longer valid because of climate change; agricultural, energy, and water managers are facing increasing uncertainty in providing basic services we depend on.

 

  Thus the IDMP aims to establish a new culture of proactive drought management that focuses on preparedness and drought predictions and measures that mitigate the impact of droughts. The areas on which the IDMP is working on are:

  · Better scientific understanding of, and inputs for, drought management;

  · Improved knowledge base, with better access to information and products;

  · Drought risk assessment, monitoring, prediction and early warning;

  · Policy and planning for drought preparedness and mitigation across sectors; and

  · Drought risk reduction and response.

  While the spatial scope is global, the results are expected to be policy relevant and tailored to specific regional and national needs and requirements. The intended outcome of the IDMP is to support actors and partners in various sectors, disciplines, and institutions to improve drought monitoring, prediction and preparedness on a global, regional, national and community scale, and to use this knowledge effectively in the development of short-term and long-term drought management plans and actions.

  The Global Water Partnership through its Regional Water Partnerships will guide and assist in developing the regional linkages of the Programme together with the World Meteorological Organizations
and its links to HydroMet Services and its Regional Climate Centres. The IDMP is a contribution to the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) especially with regards to GFCS priority areas of disaster risk reduction, water, agriculture and food security. It especially seeks to support regions and countries to develop more proactive drought policies and better predictive mechanisms and these guidelines are a contribution to this end.

  For example, the IDMP will participate in the 5^th South Asian Climate Outlook Forum (SASCOF-5) to be held in Pune, India on 22 and 23 April 2014 and is through GWP South Asia participating at the forum of water managers, held in conjunction, which will analyse the information from the climate outlook to draw conclusions for the management of water resources. This forum will also provide an opportunity to discuss the planned South Asian Drought Monitor developed by the International Water Management Institute and GWP South Asia with support from the IDMP.

  Find out more and get in touch at www.droughtmanagement.info

 
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  Frederik Pischke

  Programme Officer, Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP)
Global Water Partnership (GWP) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

  frederik.pischke@gwp.org; fpischke@wmo.int

 

 

  [1] IPCC Working Group II Assessment Report 5, 2014: Climate Change 2014:
Ipmacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability; Summary for Policymakers; available at:
http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg2/