Abstract
Drought is a recurrent phenomenon in the Sudano–Sahelian region of Cameroon. However, it has received very little attention, especially, on its impacts on the growing season of crops. To fill this gap, this study assessed the drought hazard using standardized precipitation index at a 3-month scale, and phenology of the main crops in 19 rainfall stations in the Sudano–Sahelian region of Cameroon for the period 1980–2012. The trend of drought was studied using the Mann-Kendall technique. The agricultural drought hazard was quantified based on its frequency and intensity. Results show that there is a significant trend toward a more humid crop-growing period in the northern and southeastern parts of the study area, but significant dry trends during the maize and peanut growing periods in the southwestern part of the study area. Drought occurrence rates are 7.09, 4.22, and 3.17% for the moderate, severe, and extreme, respectively. Areas featuring high and very high agricultural drought hazards are distributed in the far north, central, and the southeastern parts of the study domain. Furthermore, the Sahelian and Sudanian climatic conditions were found to be very high agricultural drought hazard zones, especially, where the maize and peanut grain crops are concerned. However, significant dry trends and very high agricultural drought hazard zones during the maize and peanut growing periods are catastrophic for agriculture and, therefore, food security.
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Acknowledgements
The authors are thankful for the support service of SODECOTON for the provision of data for this study. This work is part of the International Joint Laboratory’s research; “Dynamic of Land Ecosystems in Central Africa: A context of Global Changes” (IJL DYCOCA/LMI DYCOFAC). We want to extend our deep appreciation to the reviewers for taking the time and effort necessary to provide insightful guidance of this work.
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. NI, DAV, EFD, BOA, and RN contributed to then conceptualization of the study. The first draft of the manuscript was written by NI, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Njouenwet, I., Vondou, D.A., Fita Dassou, E. et al. Assessment of agricultural drought during crop-growing season in the Sudano–Sahelian region of Cameroon. Nat Hazards 106, 561–577 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-020-04475-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-020-04475-x