histMDH: Introduction to a Global Multi-sectoral Drought Hazard Reference Dataset for 1981-2020

Drought occurrences have become more frequent across all continents in recent years, leading to greater emphasis on understanding their impacts on water resources and socioeconomic conditions. Despite the existence of several global drought monitoring systems, a comprehensive multisectoral approach, that integrates the impact on water, agriculture, ecosystems and society, is still lacking. We therefore present a multi-sectoral global drought hazard monitoring dataset (histMDH) for the period of 1981-2020 covering five key sectors: water supply, riverine and non-agricultural land ecosystems, and both rainfed and irrigated agriculture. With a period of 40 years coverage, histMDH is suitable to be used as the baseline/reference period for a near real-time monitoring and forecasting system, part of which will be used in an operational system in future. The dataset is derived from a modelling chain using the ERA5 reanalysis data (produced by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts) as climate forcing for two global models: Global Crop Water Model (GCWM) and Global Hydrological Model (WaterGAP) to generate a suite of multi-sectoral drought hazard indicators (DHI). The resulting gridded monthly dataset comprises eleven DHIs (two meteorological, seven hydrological, and two agricultural), spanning 1981–2020. The DHIs defined can be used to identify droughts across different sectors and consequently define their characteristics and intersectoral impacts. The suitability of the DHIs for drought monitoring was assessed using multiple independent data sources at global and regional scales. As an open-access dataset, histMDH provides a critical baseline for near real-time drought hazard monitoring and forecasting within operational systems. It offers valuable support for decision-making in water management, agriculture, and food and water security monitoring. Furthermore, the spatio-temporal variability of DHIs at global and regional scales enables the identification of drought-prone regions, allowing to mitigate drought impacts and transition to more resilient agricultural, ecological and water supply systems.