Building resilience to droughts in Cuba

 

Climate change increases the chances of worsening drought, with warmer temperatures set to increase water demands and evaporation, putting greater stress on water supplies and the agricultural sector. In Cuba, for example, recent droughts have been severe, particularly in 2014 and 2004. Both events significantly affected the central region in sensitive sectors such as agriculture and water resources. Although Cuba has a surveillance and early warning system for droughts, it is not integrated in a single knowledge platform that enables effective decision-making. Information is scattered and there is no connection between climate information suppliers and end users.

This project aims to improve the decision-making capacity of agencies and cooperatives in the water, agriculture, industrial, and tourism sectors. It will contribute to reducing the risk of drought onset and economic damage by determining the best configurations of regional numerical climate models. This is expected to help establish a seasonal precipitation forecast in Cuba as a basis for calculating risk indices three months in advance, feeding into the early warning systems on drought and fire.

The intention is to strengthen the capacities of national and provincial authorities in Matanzas and Ciego de Avila provinces to define effective measures in adapting to recurrent drought events. Decision-makers will directly benefit, along with vulnerable populations in rural communities, as well as specialists, technicians, and Cuban institutions. The main goal is to link weather meteorological outputs with end-user priorities from the agriculture, water, and tourism sectors. Mainstreaming women's role in building drought resilience systems will be a priority.