Alert Note: Drought in Bolivia and El Niño phenomenon

Dansk International Bosætningsservice (DIB) has submitted an alert due to drought in Bolivia and El Niño Phenomenon.

In Bolivia, the dry season is being prolonged by human-induced climate change, and the current record-low precipitation levels are making the situation dire for local and indigenous communities in the whole country, but especially in highland communities in La Paz, Oruro, Potosí, depending on camelid livestock and farming, and in the eastern lowland communities of the Chiquitanía where forest fires are making bad things worse. Bolivia is the poorest country in South America, has a population of 12 million, and now approx. half a million families are affected by the drought.
Seven out of nine departments are in a state of emergency. The El Niño will most likely drive up temperatures and prolong the current crisis well into 2024.

According to government figures, the drought in Bolivia is now affecting more than 487,000 families. The level of Lake Titicaca, one of the biggest lakes in the world, has so far decreased by 132 centimetres below the normal average. The situation is expected to worsen between January and May 2024 as a result of the El Niño phenomenon.
According to World Meteorological Organization, there is a 93% chance that the period between 2023 to 2026 will be the warmest on record, and with the El Niño phenomenon expected to persist well into 2024, action is needed now to mitigate the damage and effects this crisis has and will continue to have on people in the region.