SENTIDO > CULTURE > TRAVEL > TANZANIA

SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO DISAPPEARING AT ACCELERATED RATE
27 February 2006

Research and new images show glaciers famed as "snows of Kilimanjaro" receding at alarming rate, far faster than projections had suggested. Researchers at Ohio State University, who warned five years ago that the famed snowcap on Mount Kilimanjaro might melt or even disappear now say the melt is occurring, but at a rate much faster than expected.

New evidence shows that fissures and holes have formed in multiple glaciers across the summit, some reaching down to bedrock. This means significant weakening in the glacial structure, and the likelihood that warmer temperatures will penetrate deeper and more widely throughout the ices.

There are concerns that disappearing glacial ice and snow could leave the region more starved for sources of already scarce drinking and irrigation water. Regional water systems depend on seasonal runoff from the glaciers, and their disappearance deprives the region of a recurring and replenishable source of fresh water. [Full Story]

AFRICA SUFFERS SPREAD OF FAMINE, HUNGER
1 August 2005

As the world begins to focus on the nearly 3 million facing hunger in Niger and the catastrophic refugee crisis in Darfur, in western Sudan, an estimated 31.1 million people across the continent face food shortages.

Arable land, foodstocks and agriculture in general are suffering dangerous setbacks, making it increasingly difficult to feed African populations, some of which are growing rapidly. [Full Story]

WORLD'S FRESH WATER RAPIDLY BEING DEPLETED, GLOBAL SHORTAGE FEARED
19 July 2004

The United Nations has been pushing for some time for a global strategy to deal with the looming scarcity of fresh water. A BBC report from June 2000 indicated 1 in 5 of all living human beings already lacks access to safe drinking water. Dramatically making the point that our oceans cannot solve the problem, the report says "Only 2.5% of the world's water is not salty, and two-thirds of that is locked up in the icecaps and glaciers."

Immediately available, clean fresh water, not contaminated by industrial chemicals, parasites or natural toxins, simply does not exist in the abundance needed... [Full Story]

SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO MELTING
5 December 2003

The snows atop Mount Kilimanjaro, made famous by Ernest Hemingway's haunting story, are melting. The glaciers that crown the Tanzanian peak are disappearing, and scientists believe they are in danger of vanishing altogether by 2015. [Full Story]

W.H.O. ANNOUNCES PLAN TO TREAT 3 MILLION AIDS PATIENTS
30 November 2003

The World Health Organization has announced a plan to train "barefoot doctors" (a term that orignated in China, meaning people without medical degrees) to provide care to AIDS patients in remote places throughout the developing world. The plan is designed to reach 3 million people suffering from the virus. [Full Story]