Climate change to make droughts longer, more common, says UN

(AP) - The frequency and duration of droughts will continue to increase due to human-caused climate change, with water scarcity already affecting billions of people across the world, the United Nations warned in a report Wednesday.

The U.N. desertification agency, which is currently hosting a conference of parties in the Ivorian city Abidjan, estimates that roughly one-third of the world’s population is already living in water-scarce regions, with that number expected to double by 2050.

But with the right adaptation measures, water scarcity across the globe can be limited, the report said.