Drought as an explanation for famine at Africa's Horn and Sahel

Zimbabwean men attempt to get a malnourished cow on its feet in rural Masvingo, in this file picture taken January 21, 2016. [Reuters]

In early February 2022, the World Food Programme announced that 13 million people in the Horn of Africa faced severe hunger as drought gripped the region. Similar concerns have been raised for several countries in the West African Sahel this year. 

Make no mistake, drought is creating hardship for farmers and herders in these areas. For instance, there have been three consecutive failed rainy seasons in the Horn of Africa. However, blaming nature for hunger is partial at best, and disingenuous at worst, because it obfuscates deeper structural problems and more complex explanations, not to mention solutions.