ABSTRACT
I. Introduction ................................................................ 138 II. Drought Policy and Preparedness: Defining
a New Paradigm......................................................... 138 III. National Drought Policy: Lessons from Australia ... 140
A. Pre-Drought Policy Period in Australia............. 141 B. The National Drought Policy.............................. 142 C. Current Status and Future Directions.............. 146
IV. Drought Policy in South Africa ................................. 150 V. Moving from Crisis to Risk Management:
Creeping toward a National Drought Policy for the United States ................................................. 158
VI. Summary..................................................................... 167 References............................................................................ 167
I. INTRODUCTION
Drought is a frequent visitor to Australia, South Africa, and the United States. Each country has struggled to effectively manage drought events, and lessons learned from these attempts have taught these countries that the reactive, crisis management approach is largely ineffective, promoting greater reliance on government and increasing societal vulnerability to subsequent drought episodes. Repeated occurrences of drought in recent decades have placed each nation on a course to develop a national drought policy that promotes improved self-reliance by placing greater emphasis on monitoring and early warning, improving decision support and preparedness planning, and enhancing risk management. Although each nation has differed in its approach, the goal is the same-to reduce societal vulnerability to drought through improved self-reliance while minimizing the need for government intervention.
