Vogt Juergen

JRC Experience on the Development of Drought Information Systems

From the definition of drought to its monitoring and assessment, this report summarizes the main steps towards an integrated drought information system. Europe, Africa and Latin America are examples, based on the experience of the JRC, that illustrate the challenges for establishing continental drought observatory initiatives. The document is structured in the following way: first an introduction explains what drought is and gives some examples of its impact in society; secondly the framework for establishing a drought monitoring system is described giving examples on the European Drought Observatory and on on-going activities in Africa and Latin America; thirdly the fundamental data and information for measuring drought is described; finally the setting up of an Integrated Drought Information System is discussed and two recent case studies, on Europe and on the Horn of Africa, are presented to illustrate the concept. Acknowledgements The authors would like to acknowledge all the colleagues who are or were intensely involved in the development of the European Drought Observatory, namely: Laura Calcagni, Alfred de Jager, Barbara Hofer, Blaz Kurnik, Giovanni Laguardia, Diego Magni, Mirko Marioni, Fabio Micale, Olga Nitcheva, Stefan Niemeyer, Simone Rossi, Guadalupe Sepulcre, Elena Sokolova and Christof Weissteiner. How to obtain EU publications Our priced publications are available from EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu), where you can place an order with the sales agent of your choice. The Publications Office has a worldwide network of sales agents. You can obtain their contact details by sending a fax to (352) 29 29-42758. The mission of the JRC is to provide customer-driven scientific and technical support for the conception, development, implementation and monitoring of EU policies. As a service of the European Commission, the JRC functions as a reference centre of science and technology for the Union. Close to the policy-making process, it serves the common interest of the Member States, while being independent of special interests, whether private or national. LB -N A -2 5 2 3 5 EN -N Generated by worlde.net