Climate Change as a Threat Multiplier in the Global South

May 14, 2026 | Lou Didelot
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From devastating floods in Pakistan to prolonged droughts across the Horn of Africa, climate-related disasters are increasingly shaping political and humanitarian crises around the world. Climate change is often described as a “threat multiplier” because it tends to intensify challenges that already exist within societies rather than directly causing conflict on its own. Environmental pressures such as droughts, floods, rising temperatures, and resource scarcity can worsen poverty, displacement, food insecurity, and political instability, particularly in countries with limited infrastructure or weak governance systems. According to the IPCC, climate-related extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and severe, disproportionately affecting vulnerable regions with lower adaptation capacity. In this way, climate change interacts with existing social and economic inequalities, making already vulnerable regions even more susceptible to crisis.