By Michael Woldeyes LLM, International Human Rights Law, mengistumichael@gmail.com

The Horn of Africa is dealing with a severe drought. The United Nations (hereafter UN) reported that this drought threatened 13 million people with hunger.[1] The UN news report reads: “Three consecutive failed rainy seasons in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia have decimated crops and caused abnormally high livestock deaths, while, shortages of water and pasture are forcing families from their homes and triggering conflict between communities”.[2] It was estimated that the drought would affect 36.1 million people in October 2022 alone, including 24.1 million in Ethiopia, 7.8 million in Somalia, and 4.2 million in Kenya.[3] According to the press release of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the drought “is becoming one of the worst climate-induced emergencies seen in the Horn of Africa”.[4] A victim of the drought from the self-proclaimed autonomous region of Somaliland said “this drought is leaving nothing behind. In previous droughts, we used to lose some animals, but we would always have food and water. But this is different. It is ‘sweeping away’ animals and people”.[5]

A National Geographic report shows that climate change is bringing a succession of extreme weather events to the Horn of Africa, resulting in drought. These weather events are linked to El Nino – a climatic phenomenon – as well as higher temperatures caused by climate change.[6] UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change also reported that the drought is a severe manifestation of climate change.[7] The region affected by it the most is ill equipped to withstand the drought.[8]

Although this climate change related drought has affected the health and lives of millions, it is not being portrayed as a human rights issue. The correlation between the fundamental rights of individuals, climate change, and the human rights obligations of States is missing in the discourse of the ongoing drought in the Horn of Africa. The aim of this blogpost is to shed light on how human rights law makes States responsible for the drought and its consequences by analyzing the link between climate change, the right to health, and human rights obligations of States.

A severe drought driven by climate change and States’ responsibility under the right to health

The current drought in the Horn of Africa is a result of climate change. Had it not been for climate change, the lives of millions of people would not have been threatened. For instance, the drought has blocked access to water and food, which causes the deterioration of people’s health. In addition, the drought is killing cattle. Those who depended on their cattle for food security would still be facing food problems even after the drought is over, which will in turn affect the health of millions.

States are responsible for climate change. Therefore, it is States that will be responsible under the right to health which is mainly protected under article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (hereafter ICESCR). The correlation between climate change and States’ responsibility under the right to health and States’ responsibility in relation to the drought in the Horn are discussed below.

1.0 The right to health and climate change

Article 12 (1) of the ICESCR provides that the “States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health”. In addition, article 11 (1) of the ICESCR recognizes the rights of people to have adequate food. On the other hand, the right to adequate food forms part of the right to health.[9] The discussions that follow focus on the right to health taking into account the fact that it has the right to adequate food as its integral part.

States have the obligation to respect, protect, and fulfill the right to health.[10] The obligation to respect “requires States to refrain from interfering directly or indirectly with the enjoyment of the right to health”.[11] The obligation to protect “requires States to take measures that prevent third parties from interfering with [the right to health]”.[12] On the other hand, the obligation to fulfill “requires States to adopt appropriate legislative, administrative, budgetary, judicial, promotional and other measures towards the full realization of the right to health”.[13]

According to UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (hereafter CESCR), “the drafting history and the express wording of article 12.2 [of the ICESCR] acknowledge that the right to health embraces a wide range of socio-economic factors that promote conditions in which people can lead a healthy life, and extends to the underlying determinants of health, such as… a healthy environment”.[14] For example, the fulfilment of article 12 (2) (c) of the ICESCR on the prevention, treatment, and control of epidemic, endemic, occupational, and other diseases requires “… the promotion of social determinants of good health, such as environmental safety…”.[15] Therefore, the obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill the right to health and adequate food also apply on climate change since the right to health encompasses issues of climate change.

2.0  Who shall be responsible under the right to health for the drought in the Horn of Africa?

Based on the foregoing, the main question in relation to the drought in the Horn and the human rights obligations of States is who is the primary bearer of responsibility towards protecting the people of the Horn from health and other risks that are being caused by the Climate Change? What is the world community, especially countries who contribute highly to climate change, required to do?  

ICESCR obliges States to take the necessary steps to mobilize the maximum of their available resources to protect the health of their citizens.[16] Even though this is an obligation that will be realized progressively, it also points to actions that have an immediate effect which a State is required to achieve by taking the steps it is capable to take.[17] For example, States can issue a health policy which targets drought victims. In addition, States have also a core obligation to ensure the satisfaction of, at the very least, minimum essential levels of the right to health which include ensuring:[18]

1. access to health facilities, and minimum essential food;
2. access to basic shelter, housing and sanitation, and adequate supply of safe and potable water;
3. the provision of essential drugs; and
4. equitable distribution of all health facilities, goods and services.

Therefore, even though countries in the Horn of Africa are currently facing a severe drought as a result of climate change which resulted due to the actions of other States, they take the primary obligation of protecting their citizens from the effects of the drought by making every effort to use all available resources at their disposal to fulfill the minimum core obligations stated in the preceding paragraph. However, the States in the Horn of Africa are some of the poorest countries in the world and they do not have the means to withstand the drought and protect their citizens even if they allocate their available resources towards fighting the effects of climate change. On the other hand, as explained below, the right to health obliges the international community, especially the countries that are primarily responsible for the drought by inducing climate change, protect the health of the citizens of the Horn from the effects of the drought.

The recognition of the right to health and the duties of States to respect, protect, and fulfill it goes beyond the territory of a State. All States, as CESCR puts it, “owe such duties not only to their own populations, but also to populations outside their territories, in accordance with article 55 and 56 of the Charter of the United Nations”.[19] CESCR also provides that “States parties have to respect the enjoyment of the right to health in other countries”.[20] As a result, all States Parties to the ICESCR have the duty to respect and protect the right to health outside of their territories. This includes working towards preventing climate change by acting on the factors that cause it.

In instances where States fail to fulfill their duties of mitigating climate change and environmental disasters such as the drought in the Horn take effect, these States are duty bound under the right to health to lend a helping hand to the States that are affected by the climate change. In this regard, the CESCR states that “depending on the availability of resources, States should facilitate access to essential health facilities, goods and services in other countries, wherever possible and provide the necessary aid when required”.[21] It also stipulates that:[22]

States parties have a joint and individual responsibility … to cooperate in providing disaster relief and humanitarian assistance in times of emergency, including assistance to refugees and internally displaced persons. Each State should contribute to this task to the maximum of its capacities.

In addition, the CESCR has noted in several instances that “a failure to prevent foreseeable harm to human rights caused by climate change, or a failure to mobilize the maximum available resources in an effort to do so, could constitute a breach of [the obligation of States]”.[23] As a result, the international community in general and States that take the primary responsibility for climate change in particular, are obliged to observe the right to health of the people of the Horn whose health and lives are at risk due to the drought by providing every assistance needed to alleviate the people from the disaster they are facing.

To sum up, the climate change induced drought in the Horn of Africa proves to be against the fundamental rights of millions of people who live in that part of the world, including their right to health. States of the Horn of Africa are the primary duty bearers towards protecting the health of their citizens against the drought. However, other States, especially States who are mainly responsible for climate change, are obliged, under the right to health, to assist the States of the Horn in their fight against the drought. 

[1] UN, Severe drought threatens 13 million with hunger In Horn of Africa < https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/02/1111472> accessed on April 5, 2022.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Reliefweb, Horn of Africa Drought: Regional Humanitarian Overview & Call to Action  <https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/horn-africa-drought-regional-humanitarian-overview-call-action-revised-21-september-2022#:~:text=Across%20the%20Horn%20of%20Africa,and%204.2%20million%20in%20Kenya.> accessed on October 25, 2022.

[4] Reliefweb, Horn of Africa Drought: Humanitarian Key Messages < https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/horn-africa-drought-humanitarian-key-messages> accessed on October 28, 2022.

[5] OXFAM International, Droughts in East Africa: If the rains do not come, none of us will survive https://www.oxfam.org/en/drought-east-africa-if-rains-do-not-come-none-us-will-survive> accessed on October 28, 2022.

[6] Ibid. See also OXFAM (n 4).

[7] Grace Ndungu, A catastrophic forecast for the Horn of Africa < https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/catastrophic-forecast-horn-africa> accessed on October 28, 2022.

[8] National Geographic, Historic drought looms for 20 million living in Horn of Africa < https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/historic-drought-looms-for-20-million-living-in-horn-of-africa> accessed on October 28, 2022.

[9] For example, CESCR provides that States are required to ensure equal access to the underlying determinants of health including nutritiously safe food. See UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, “General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health (Art. 12)” (11 August 2000) E/C.12/2000/4 para 36. The Convention on the Rights of the Child also defines the right to food as an essential right required to fulfill the right to health. See UN General Assembly, Convention on the Rights of the Child (adopted 20 November 1989, entered into force 2 September 1990) 1577 UNTS 3 (CRC) article 24 (2) (c). 

[10] UN CESCR “General Comment No. 14” (n 9) para 33.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Ibid.

[14] Ibid para 4.  

[15] Ibid para 16.

[16] UN General Assembly, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (adopted 16 December 1966, entered into force 3 January 1976) 993 UNTS 3 (ICESCR) article 2 (1).

[17] UN CESCR “General Comment No. 14” (n 9) para 30, 31.

[18] Ibid para 43.

[19] UN CESCR, “Climate change and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights” (31 October 2018) E/c.12/2018/1 para 5.

[20] UN CESCR “General Comment No. 14” (n 9) para 39.

[21] Ibid.

[22]Ibid para 40.

[23] UN CESCR, “Climate change and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights” (n 19) para 6.