Climate & Health in Africa

Start Here: Climate & Meningitis in Afirca
Climate & Health in Africa
Location: The Meningitis Belt of Africa
Themes: Climate, public health, prediction, disease dynamics
Summary: Though it has affected close to a million people in 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the dynamics of meningitis are not completely understood. Outbreaks of this disease, which attacks the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, place undue strain on already taxed health systems in these countries, as well as the livelihoods of afflicted families. While meningitis can be prevented through vaccination, in order for it to be effective the vaccine must be given just before the outbreak will occur. Thus, researchers are trying to predict when and where outbreaks will occur.
Climate appears to play a key role in these outbreaks, as they occur during the dry season in this semi-arid zone. The patterns of occurrence, however, seem to be shifting, and more data are needed in order to fully understand the disease dynamics of meningitis.
For more information, visit Meningitis Environmental Risk Information
Technologies (MERIT) Project
Photo credit: Steve Evans
This tour was created by The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI).
More info: http://iri.columbia.edu
Climate & Meningitis in Afirca
Though it has affected close to a million people in 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the dynamics of meningitis are not completely understood. Outbreaks of this disease, which attacks the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, place undue strain on already taxed health systems in these countries, as well as the livelihoods of afflicted families. While meningitis can be prevented through vaccination, in order for it to be effective the vaccine must be given just before the outbreak will occur. Thus, researchers are trying to predict when and where outbreaks will occur.
The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI)

Tour Resources

Data

Meningitis Belt

Meningitis Belt - Outline

Mean Annual Precipitation
Source: IRI Data Library

legend precip

Wind
Source: IRI Data Library

time labels

Specific Humidity
Source: IRI Data Library

legend humidity

Meningitis Epidemics in Ethiopia
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Ethiopia Meteorological Stations
Locations of Ethiopian meteorological stations

MODIS Data
See source

USGS LandDAAC MODIS version_005 EAF NDVI 6-21 Mar 2009

USGS LandDAAC MODIS version_005 WAF NDVI 6-21 Mar 2009

USGS LandDAAC MODIS version_005 SAF NDVI 6-21 Mar 2009

Placemarks

Life in the Meningitis Belt
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Senegal | Mali | Ghana | Ethiopia
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Photo by Ecosen/Julien Potron | Photo by Patrick Smith | Photo by Julia Petipas & Patrick Smith | Photo by Steve Evans
While individual cases of meningitis are found worldwide, the most devastating epidemics occur in the notorious Meningitis Belt of sub-Saharan Africa, stretching from Senegal in the west to Ethiopia in the east. Here, the disease has affected close to a million people in 25 countries in the past two decades.
This tour was created by The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI).
More info: http://iri.columbia.edu
The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI)

Vaccination Strategy
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Dr. Eric Bertherat
Medical Epidemiologist
"Regarding the strategy, what we would like to do is to improve our decision system, to try to make a kind of preemptive vaccination, to start the vaccination just before the outbreak occurs. And for that, we need to better understand what are the risk factors for having these outbreaks in each district."
For more information, visit:
World Health Organization:Department of
Pandemic Alert & Response
Meningitis Environmental Risk Information
Technologies (MERIT) Project
This tour was created by The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI).
More info: http://iri.columbia.edu
The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI)

The Burden of Meningitis
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Dr. Forgor Abudulai Adams
Research Fellow
"In time of epidemics or outbreaks the health system is disorganized. The community is disorganized, because people have to be burying their loved ones. People become scared, panic, they don’t know what is happening, whether they will be next. And generally the burden on the family is very huge- lives are lost, resources have been spent impromptu, funds have been looked for to cover bills and take care of whatever expenses they might have incurred."
For more information, visit:
Navrongo Health Research Center
Navrongo, Ghana

African Dust Storms
Starting in November, winds bring dry, dusty conditions to the Belt. During this time, the number of meningitis cases begins to rise.
Photo by Kevin Matteson

Changes in the Belt
Dr. Yonas Asfaw
Officer of Disease Prevention
and Control
"Meningitis used to occur mostly in the western and the northwestern part of the country. As you know, the meningitis belt, involves most of the western part of Ethiopia, and the pattern of occurrence in the previous years was 8-10 years on a cyclic mode.
But as of the past 10 years, meningitis is a yearly phenomenon involving a smaller place and a much milder form than the previous years. So meningitis is moving now from the west to the southern part and it has become a yearly phenomenon."
For more information, visit:
Ethiopian Ministry of Health
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

The Need for Data
Diriba Korecha Dadi
Leader of Weather Forecast and Early Warning Team
"Our meteorological stations mainly situated following the main roads and also in the small towns or cities, so we don’t have such a significant number of meteorological stations particularly over these remote areas where we used to get these meningitis cases. We try to identify the potential climate parameters that might cause the spreading or emerging of meningitis, particularly temperature and the onset of the rainy season over this western part of the country where the meningitis belt extends."
National Meteorological Agency
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
"Our meteorological stations mainly situated following the main roads and also in the small towns or cities, so we don’t have such a significant number of meteorological stations particularly over these remote areas where we used to get these meningitis cases. We try to identify the potential climate parameters that might cause the spreading or emerging of meningitis, particularly temperature and the onset of the rainy season over this western part of the country where the meningitis belt extend."

Ethiopia Climate & Health Working Group
IRI scientists participated in the Science and Technical Meeting on Climate and Health, Addis Ababa, September 2008

Africa CHWGs

Ethiopia CHWG

Kenya Polygon

Madagascar Polygon

PathstoIRI

Summer Institute
Summer Institute on
Climate Information for Public Health
An annual Summer Institute is held at the IRI for climate and health professionals from around the world. To date, 25 professionals from 19 countries have benefited from this training.
IRI Summer Institue
Bringing together climate and health experts from around the world
An annual Summer Institute is held at the IRI for climate and health professionals from around the world. To date 25 professionals from 19 countries, have benefited from this training.

Misc

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