Drought planning and risk assessment: Status and future directions

Although drought is a normal, recurring feature of climate, little progress has been made in drought management in most parts of the world. The progress in drought planning that has been achieved in some countries and regions can be useful for other drought-prone regions. In this paper, a drought planning process, originally developed in 1991 for state-level government in the United States, is suggested as a model for governments at various levels to follow in the development of a drought plan. The process, which emphasizes risk management rather than crisis management, is based on the three primary components of a drought plan: monitoring and early warning; risk and impact assessment; and mitigation and response. The steps in the process are generic and easily adaptable to all drought-prone regions.