Monitoring Vegetation Health in Africa Using Remote Sensing Measurements: Implications for the African-Water-Energy-Food-Health Nexus

Abstract

The African continent is facing pressing challenges resulting from the effects of climate change. Rising temperatures, shifting precipitation patterns, and the occurrence of extreme weather events, such as prolonged droughts, have substantially impacted the fragile balance of the African-Water-Energy-Food-Health (AWEFH) Nexus. Monitoring changes in vegetation health over time can provide crucial insights into the ecological responses to these climatic variations, offering valuable information for developing sustainable strategies to address the interlinked challenges of water availability, energy security, food production, and human health. 

In this study, we leveraged the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Advanced Very High-Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) vegetation health product, spanning from 1981 to the present with a spatial resolution of 4km and a temporal resolution of 7 days. By utilizing the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Vegetation Health Index (VHI), we assessed the spatiotemporal dynamics of vegetation health across Africa. Monitoring Africa's vegetation health with NDVI and VHI can inform sustainable strategies to tackle interconnected challenges of water, energy, food, and health amidst climate change.