The scientific community has been working on the possibility of a relationship between periods of drought and rioting for several years. The University of Geneva (UNIGE), operating in partnership with the universities of Heidelberg (Germany) and Lucerne (Switzerland), has formally verified this hypothesis by studying almost 1,800 riots that occurred over a 20-year period in sub-Saharan Africa. The researchers observed a systematic link between the sudden depletion of water resources and the outbreak of unrest. They also succeeded in quantifying the impact of geographic and social factors on the same link. The findings, which underline the importance of the role of political institutions in the event of a drought, can be read in the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management.