Heatwaves in Africa
Q&A with Dr. Kiswendsida Guigma
Interviewed by Roop K. Singh, Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre
Dr. Kiswendsida Guigma is a Technical Advisor at Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre. He recently completed his PhD with the University of Sussex on the drivers and predictability of heatwaves in the West African Sahel and is based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
I had the opportunity to sit down (virtually) with Dr. Guigma and ask him some pressing questions that were on my mind about heatwaves in Africa. Here’s what he had to say (answers are edited for lengths and clarity).
Q: Are heatwaves an issue in Africa?
A: Yes, definitely, they are. Africa is a region where heat is quasi-permanent all year-round. You can have temperature values that are 40°C and up. When temperatures exceed the tolerable level, it’s really unbearable for Africans. It’s a really big risk in Africa and unfortunately its often overlooked.
Q: How do heatwaves impact different regions of Africa?
A: Different regions of Africa have different climates, and different levels of exposure to extreme heat. The region that has the most exposure to extreme heat is obviously the one closest to the Sahara Desert, which is the Sahel in West Africa. Since this region is also affected by another set of climate and political crises, it makes it very vulnerable to heatwaves. There are a number of past floods, droughts, and now conflict that make it vulnerable to heat. You can easily have temperatures about 40°C during the hottest part of the year, so it’s a region to monitor when it comes to heatwaves.
In Southern Africa, we have something similar, but what is unique is that there heatwaves are often compounded with other hazards such as drought. They often co-occur simultaneously.
Heat also impacts some regions in East Africa, specifically the arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) towards eastern Kenya, Somali and going towards Djibouti. These regions are also vulnerable due to the levels of heat and existing poverty.
With climate projections, regions that might have been thought of as more “comfortable” in terms of thermal stress are also becoming more exposed to extreme heat – including central parts of Africa and the Guinea region of West Africa where there is a lot of moisture in the atmosphere. An increase of temperatures with high moisture creates highly uncomfortable conditions.
Q: How come we don’t really hear about heatwaves in Africa?
A: This is mostly because of negligence. People feel like they are already used to the heat and are not really aware of the change that is taking place in terms of increasing temperatures. They are not aware that they are more and more vulnerable. That, I think, is the most important reason why you do not hear about heatwaves. Another factor, is that you have a lot of other hazards that have more visible impacts like floods and droughts. It’s hard to see the impact of heatwaves. They feel like, “yeah we are used to the hot temperatures, and we are strong enough to resist it.” Which is not true, because heat is the silent killer, and with the accumulation of heat over time the impact can be quite disastrous. We do need studies actually to show this to people.
Q: Do we have any evidence of the impact of heat on populations in Africa?
A: The most challenging thing is that heatwaves are really overlooked by scientists and the media. The only proof that heatwaves affect people often comes from media. Whenever there is an unusual level of heat in a city, we can easily see it in newsletters and national TV. They go to the met services and hospitals to figure out what’s happening. Last year in Burkina Faso, for example, there were reports of about 67 excess deaths from the heat. But since excess deaths from heat are not measured on a regular basis, it’s quite difficult to track. Having clear proofs of heatwave impacts is still a challenge in Africa. There are some pilot projects that are working on gathering data, but they are still to be published.
Q: What research would you like to see more of on heat in Africa?
A: The impact research in Africa is most awaited. Not only the impact of heat on health but also on water, labor, energy. We need evidence on the impact of heat on all of these sectors. This is the number one priority. And the second most important priority is more science on heatwave predictability. We know there is good predictability in West Africa, but this needs to be extended to the Pan-African scale. So far, there have been only a few projects, and we need more investment into research on heatwaves in Africa.