Compare and contrast the reasons for the occurrence and the scale of impacts of two named droughts

Droughts is one of the most damaging disaster in the world, especially at those countries where they rely on rainfalls, while agriculture takes most part of country's GDP. Droughts would not just decrease country's economy, but also possible to increase in famine and dehydration. Damage would be most severe when it occurs in LEDCs, such as Ethiopia, while MEDCs will suffer the less such as Australia. In this essay, droughts in Ethiopia and Australia will be compared and contrast, in terms of reasons of occurrence and the scale of impacts.

In both Ethiopia and Australia droughts are caused by the El Nino effects. El Nino effects is refereed to as a climate cycle in the Pacific Ocean with a global impact on weather patterns. This could bring large amount of rains in some area, and take away rain falls from other area. I this case Ethiopia and Australia are places where all the humid air are taken away from. El Nino effect caused the country to have anomalously high pressure around, which prevented the cool and moisture wind from the ocean and obstructed the monsoon season for these two countries. However geographical location is one of the key cause that causes droughts in both Ethiopia and Australia. Both countries are located in or near the sub-tropical area where produces dry and sinking air. Due to the congenital condition of dry air, and small amount of rain-fall, plus the El Nino effect droughts will happen in those places. While there are other causes that further enhanced the problem of droughts, especially in Ethiopia. Australia is one of the MEDCs in the world, which able to sustain itself from receiving least possible consequences. In Ethiopia on the other hand, a country which categorized as a LEDC does not have the money and ability to sustain itself and receive least possible consequences. Problem such as food insecurity would only worsen the situation and lead to famine, which would draw people's attention to famine rather than the droughts itself.

In terms of the scale of impacts within these two countries. Ethiopia has significantly larger impacts compares to the droughts in Australia. One of the reason is that Ethiopia is one of the LEDCs and does not have as much resources that Australia does to prevent and reduce amount of impacts towards the society. Impacts towards these two countries are listed in the following.

Australia

1. Cut the 2006/2007 wheat crops to 9.8 million tonnes from 25.0 million tonnes the year before

2. Average farm debt rose from $357,3800 to $412,700 in June 30, 2007

3. Threats of shortage in drinking water supply

4. Increasing rural to urban migration

Ethiopia

1. 5.6 million people require emergency food assistance

2. 2.7 million mothers and children need supplementary feeding

3. 9.2 million people need assistance to get clean drinking water

4. 1.9 million household need livestock support

In conclusion that the both Ethiopia and Australia experienced droughts due to El Nino effect, but the damage are extremely different. This is because of the level of country's development, and the government response to the problem. Although increasingly people argues that the climate change is one of the causes of droughts in those place, but according to data collected, it only shows that it is one of the causes that enhance the stregnth of droughts rather than the directly cause of droughts.