ARUSHA, Tanzania, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania loses about 145 million U.S. dollars annually due to floods and drought, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) said on Monday.
Amjad Abbashar, UNISDR Chief of Regional Office for Africa, made the remarks in the country's capital Dodoma when opening a five-day-workshop on Disaster Risk Assessment and Risk Modeling.
He noted that housing and agricultural sectors were badly affected by floods.
"When considering the direct economic losses resulting from drought, the agricultural and the hydropower sectors lose more than 100 million U.S. dollars annually," Abbashar said.
Abbasahar added that every year, drought affects 10 percent of the population and livestock in Tanzania on average.
Maimuna Tarishi, Permanent Secretary in the Tanzania's Prime Minister's Office, said between January and December in 2018, floods affected 50 districts, caused 71 deaths, and injured 64 people as well as affecting several houses including 43 schools.
Alvaro Rodriguez, the UN resident coordinator noted that in a country like Tanzania where the likelihood of major emergencies was relatively low, but the recurrent floods and droughts have significant impact on communities, especially at local level.
"The challenges in Tanzania are to a great extent climate-related, and the government's integration of climate change into its disaster risk management policy is therefore much welcome," he said.
He added that the policy provides guidance to the work of all stakeholders, including UN, and is reflected in the support that UN has provided the development of Emergency Preparedness and Response Plans at community level.
