Recently, the World Meteorological Organization warned that extreme weather is occurring frequently, and climate change is hitting Asia hard.

According to the World Meteorological Organization, Asia is the region most affected by disasters in the world, with floods and storms causing the highest casualties and economic losses, while the impact of high temperatures is even more severe, especially on agricultural crops such as coffee.

Due to drought and soaring temperatures, the beds of multiple reservoirs have visibly dried up and cracked, with hundreds of thousands of fish found dead in some reservoirs. Five provinces in Vietnam—Quang Tri, Quang Ngai, Binh Thuan, Phu Yen, and Gia Lai—have issued level-two drought warnings.

According to local coffee farmers, during a normal season coffee trees are usually irrigated five times, but in the current season many farmers have already irrigated their trees seven times and believe an eighth irrigation is needed, yet there is insufficient water to do so.

The wells and groundwater used for irrigation are drying up, and under severe water shortages and extreme heat, this leads to nutritional imbalances in the trees. In addition, the hot and dry environment favors the growth and spread of certain pests, mainly the cotton bollworm, which damages the flowers and fruits on the plants, ultimately leading to reduced yields.

Recently, some coffee plants in Vietnam have shown signs of wilting and yellowing leaves falling off, which is partly due to excessive drought and partly due to pest infestations.

According to reports, Gia Lai Province, a major coffee-growing area in central Vietnam, is currently suffering from an infestation by the cotton bollworm, which remains uncontrolled. The pest is spreading rapidly, making the situation extremely severe.

However, by May, the weather is expected to improve slightly, with rainfall forecasted in Vietnam. Local meteorological authorities indicate that precipitation in May may reach around 2.27 mm, which could alleviate the current drought conditions.