Africa, North

North Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, and includes seven countries or territories: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, and western Sahara.

With the exception of Tunisia, the nations of North Africa are vulnerable to a host of natural hazards that often lead to disasters. These vulnerabilities include severe earthquakes, persistent or periodic droughts, dust storms, and mudslides and floods in the rainy season. Additionally, Egypt experiences the khamsin, a driving windstorm that may occur in the spring; Libya is subject to the ghibli, a hot, dry southern wind that often deposits dust over the land for several days during the spring and fall; and western Sahara undergoes the harmattan, a persistent, blinding haze, as well as sirocco winds that transport dust over ...