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This briefing on El Niño 2015-2016 and its impacts, makes the case that governments, donors and humanitarian actors must respond through urgent humanitarian action where the situation is already at breaking point and elsewhere support early action

As the climatic phenomenon commonly known as El Niño disturbs weather patterns across the Pacific and much of Asia, the European Commission has partnered with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) to enhance the resilience of the most populated country in the Pacific, Papua New Guinea – where the impact has been the most severe so far...

The weatherman warned Ugandans that the El Niño rain was going to ravage the country up to February, reports the Daily Monitor. However, the script has been changing with the early 'January heat wave' and lately, the cold wave. Many citizens are now questioning the accuracy of the weather forecasts while others are thankful that they have been spared the destruction that comes with the rains....

'What is required is for government and aid agencies to work with these usually resource-challenged farmers to help them stock enough feed for their animals. The unfortunate part is that there are competing needs for both humans and livestock and it is cattle that suffer,' said Naboth Chuma, a livestock researcher at Chinhoyi University of Technology...

Nigel Timmins, Oxfam International’s Humanitarian Director, said: 'If the world acts now, we can help prevent disaster and suffering for millions of people – rather than waiting for people to start dying. The aid community has helped communities to avoid the worst effects of disasters linked to El Nino on a small scale in countries like Kenya and Malawi, but what is needed now is a combined international effort - we can and need to do this right'...

The aquatic conundrum is that the water removal system, which guaranteed the city’s ability to withstand big storms barreling in from the Pacific nearly every winter, is now seen as the worst symbol and central cause of LA’s problems with water management, especially in the aftermath of a punishing four-year drought, but even more so looking toward a future defined by climate change...

Science and Policy Knowledge Series, Advisory Note, December 2015:

This publication notes that El Niño will likely continue to cause significant drought during the period from November 2015 to April 2016, spanning southern parts of Sumatra, Java and

Sarath Wickramasinghe, a disaster risk reduction specialist with the Sri Lanka Red Cross who works in North Central Province, said people in the country's dry zone lacked sufficient infrastructure and knowledge to adapt to shifting rains. 'They are traditionally geared for the monsoon, which comes twice a year - even some officials are,' he said. 'That mindset needs to be changed'...

'It is difficult to avoid associating the severity of the floods with the modifications that have to do with climate change,' said Jorge Taiana, vice president of Parlasur, 'a serious joint response by the region is absolutely essential with respect to the two major strategies for confronting climate change, mitigation and adaptation to its effects,'...

'In terms of financial losses, we were somewhat fortunate in 2015: Strong tropical cyclones frequently only hit sparsely populated areas or did not make landfall at all. In the North Atlantic, El Niño helped to curtail the development of heavy storms. Measures to reduce loss susceptibility have also had a positive effect', explained Peter Höppe of Munich Re...