People Exposed to Climate Change: Africa
December 2024 to February 2025
Temperature anomalies
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The last three months were warmer than normal for 51 countries, averaging 0.8°C above the 1991-2020 normal.
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Lesotho, home to more than two million people, experienced the highest average temperature anomaly across Africa — 1.4°C above the 1991-2020 normal.
Top 10 Countries in Africa with the Highest Average Temperature Anomalies
Days with unusual heat made twice as likely by climate change
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Over the last three months, more than one billion people across 36 countries in Africa experienced daily average temperatures that were strongly influenced by climate change (defined as CSI 2 or higher) for at least one-third of the season (30 or more days).
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Nearly 14 million people in Rwanda experienced 87 days during the past three months with temperatures strongly influenced by climate change.
Top 10 Countries in Africa with the Most Unusual Heat Added by Climate Change
Risky heat days added by climate change
Risky heat days are days with temperatures hotter than 90% of temperatures observed in a local area over the 1991-2020 period. Heat-related health risks rise when temperatures climb above this local threshold. This is a conservative approximation of the local minimum mortality temperature (MMT), an indicator of the local links between temperature and mortality based on peer-reviewed research by Tobias et al. (2021) and Gasparrini et al. (2015).
- More than 119 million people across the continent were exposed to at least 30 risky heat days that were added by climate change.