ISTANBUL, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- Türkiye is facing one of its most severe droughts in decades, with national rainfall plunging far below long-term averages and threatening water supplies and agriculture across the country.
According to data released Monday by the State Meteorological Service, between October 2024 and August 2025, the country received 401.1 kilograms of rainfall per square meter, 27 percent below the long-term average and 29 percent lower than the same period last year, marking the lowest rainfall in Türkiye in 52 years, the data showed.
The decline was particularly severe in Southeastern Anatolia, where rainfall fell over 53 percent below seasonal norms.
Meanwhile, the Mediterranean region recorded its lowest rainfall in 51 years, while the Marmara and Aegean regions saw their lowest levels in 18 years. In the capital, Ankara experienced its driest water year in 47 years. Only parts of the Black Sea region reported above-average rainfall, providing limited relief.
Halim Orta, an academic at Tekirdag Namik Kemal University and a local wheat farmer, described the drought as unprecedented in recent memory. He told Xinhua that both surface and groundwater resources are declining sharply, intensifying the hydrological drought.
Orta warned of severe socioeconomic consequences, noting that residents struggle to access sufficient water for daily needs and hygiene, while reduced agricultural yields are already driving up food prices and threatening food availability. ■
