INFLOW: improved anticipation of floods on the White Nile

 

South Sudan is facing a complex humanitarian emergency, with one-fifth of its people living at the intersection of extreme poverty and flood risk. Anticipatory humanitarian action has the potential to provide targeted, timely support in advance of a disaster. However, anticipatory action is limited in environments where people are affected by conflict, violence and displacement. Furthermore, anticipatory action relies on accurate hydrological forecast models, which are insufficient in the White Nile River catchment.

This project aims to improve early warning capacity in the White Nile River catchment and increase the capacity of humanitarian organizations equipped to act on new information. Research will be undertaken by a transdisciplinary team of mandated government agencies, regional forecasting bodies, academic institutions and humanitarian partners. It will examine how recent flooding is represented in existing hydrological models and how the flooding impacts people, particularly women and children, in conflict-affected communities. The new knowledge will be integrated into existing models.

This project is part of the Climate Adaptation and Resilience (CLARE) initiative co-funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and IDRC. CLARE is a five-year, CAD120-million initiative that aims to enable inclusive and sustainable action to build resilience to climate change and natural hazards for people across Africa and the Asia-Pacific region.