During the 1980s and 1990s, several extended drought periods affected regional fire occurrence in Africa. The years 1982-1983 were greatly influenced by the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event highlighted in the Asia regional report. The ENSO caused an extended drought in western Africa leading to extreme fire occurrence. A report from Côte d'Ivoire reveals that more than 60 000 ha of forests and 108 000 ha of coffee and cacao plantations were destroyed by wildfires. Between 1983 and 1994 wildfires destroyed more than 70 000 homes and killed 77 people (Anonymous 1996).
The impact of extended droughts on savannah and open woodland ecosystems of southern Africa (including other wooded land), however, often results in decreased fire activity. The extended drought that affected southern Africa in 1991-1992 reportedly led to a decrease in the productivity of grasses that constitute the fuels that carry fire through the grass savannas and open woodlands (van Wilgen et al. 1997a). Scarcity of grazing resources for wildlife and domestic animals further reduced fuel loads below critical thresholds (a minimum of 0.5 to 1 t/ha of grass fuel is needed to carry a fire) so that the overall amount of fuels available for wildland fires decreased.
The consequences of extreme droughts on afro-montane forests are described in the Ethiopia country report that is part of this regional analysis. Increasing land-use pressure, especially in the context of food shortages and famine associated with drought, led to an increase of fire use and escaped wildfires in these highly fire-vulnerable ecosystems.
The impacts of wildfires in Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Senegal, South Africa and the Sudan are described in the country reports of this regional study. For emissions from vegetation fires in Africa, see under Fire Research.
