Botswana: Vulnerability Assessment Committee Results 2019

Overview

Rainfall distribution was very poor during the 2018/2019 rainy season and temperatures above normal, which led to the Government of Botswana declaring a drought. The unevenly distributed rains, heat waves and dry spells that prevailed throughout the season resulted in lower hectarage planted and crop failure. There was a drop of 92 per cent in the cereal production compared to the previous season (from 66,093 tons in 2017/2018 to 5,356 in 2018/2019). About 38,300 people are permanently or temporarily food insecure in the country, an increase of 9.3 per cent from the previous year. The percentage of children underweight has increased to 4.3 per cent.