Increasing extreme rainfall and rapid urbanisation, major drivers behind Gaborone’s deadly floods

Gaborone, Botswana - February 20th 2025: Flooding of the Segoditshane river in Gaborone, Botswana, Africa. Bashi Kikia / Shutterstock.com.

In mid-February 2025, southern Botswana and eastern South Africa were hit by heavy rainfall, sparking severe flooding across the region. The floods claimed at least 31 lives, including 22 in KwaZulu-Natal (Mhlophe-Gumede, 2025), near Durban, and at least nine in Botswana’s capital, Gaborone, amongst them six children (Government of Botswana, 2025). At least 5,000 people … Continue reading “Increasing extreme rainfall and rapid urbanisation, major drivers behind Gaborone’s deadly floods”

Women and girls continue to bear disproportionate impacts of heatwaves in South Sudan that have become a constant threat

A women collects water in Juba, South Sudan. Image by Rod Waddington.

Extreme heat has affected a large region of  continental Eastern Africa since mid-February. Extreme daytime temperatures have been recorded in South Sudan particularly affecting people in poor housing and outdoor workers, a very large part of the population.  After dozens of children collapsed with heatstroke in Juba, schools were closed for two weeks nationwide starting … Continue reading “Women and girls continue to bear disproportionate impacts of heatwaves in South Sudan that have become a constant threat”