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Land degradation is a major threat to Namibia’s land resources. Uncontrolled grazing, poor methods of crop production and fire are some of
the causes of land degradation in Namibia’s Katima Mulilo region. The Katima Mulilo area is one of the fire hotspots of southern Africa. Katima
Droughts
Recurrent and prolonged droughts in the
Zambezi basin are a threat to food security.
Extensive droughts affected the basin in 1981-
82, 1986-87, 1991-92, 1994-95 and 2001-03
(SARDC 2009b). Besides the direct impact on
agriculture, previous droughts have caused
water levels in dams and rivers to fall. For
example, the water level of the Kariba Dam
dropped by 11.6 metres from 1981 to 1992 due
to a series of droughts (SARDC and HBS 2010).
This had a major impact on the dam’s capacity
to generate hydro power. In Malawi, many rivers
that rise from Mt. Mulanje, and historically had
reliable water flow year round, have begun to
dry up (IIED 2008).
A maize crop wilting due to drought.
© SARDC