The Horn of Africa is one of the most drought-prone regions globally. Recurrent and prolonged droughts have intensified food insecurity, degraded ecosystems, and undermined the livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers and pastoralists whose survival depends on rain-fed agriculture and livestock production.

With funding from the Adaptation Fund totalling over USD 13 million, DRESS-EA adopts a coordinated regional approach to drought risk management, strengthening the capacity of institutions and communities to anticipate, prepare for, and respond to drought impacts.
To address these escalating challenges, the Adaptation Fund-funded regional project aims to increase the resilience of smallholder farmers and pastoralists to climate change risks, particularly those related to drought, by establishing appropriate early warning systems and implementing drought adaptation actions. The Sahara and Sahel Observatory is the regional implementing entity, while Djibouti, Kenya, Sudan, and Uganda are the national executing entities, and the Global Water Partnership is the Regional Executing Entity.