Nominated MP Rachael Shebesh said on Tuesday that the Ministry of Planning had accepted to include disaster risk reduction focusing on climate change in the ambitious plan.
“You know planning is everything. You cannot have a Vision 2030 that doesn’t incorporate the risk factor. What if we don’t have a good crop. What if we have locusts invading our farms, or any other disaster,” Ms Shebesh who is also the Chairperson of an Africa Parliamentarians Group on Climate Change posed.
She said inclusion of the disaster risk reduction strategy would allow Kenya to survive any disaster caused by climate change.
The legislator added that Kenya had been selected as one of the five African countries that would present the continent’s agenda at the high level climate change meeting to be held in Copenhagen in December.
via .: Capital News :..
Agricultural practices that improve land use and management, through increasing and maintaining soil carbon stocks can, if properly implemented, generate multiple benefits: climate change mitigation, increased agricultural and food production, pro-poor income generation, environmental services and improved resilience/adaptive capacity of farming systems. Alexander Mueller Assistant Director-General, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Using modeling global warming has been shown to contribute 37 percent drop in rainfall and set to increase.
According to Prof. Peter George Baines, his analysis revealed four regions where rainfall has been declining linked to climate change. The affected areas were the continental United States, southeastern Australia, a large region of equatorial Africa and the Altiplano in South America. This work was based on the examination of reanalysis and satellite-based rainfall data, coupled with dynamical interpretations.
Mexico is currently experiencing one of the worst water crisis ever. This great city was once a lake before being drained to make way for the metropolis. It is now on the verge of disaster.
Meanwhile, according to a report featured by the National Geographic, 22 African countries are experiencing their worst wet seasons in decades, and climate experts say that global warming is to blame.
Devastating rains and flash floods have affected 1.5 million people across the continent, killing at least 300 since early summer.
West Africa has seen its most severe floods in years, as torrents swamped the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s capital of Kinshasa last week, killing 30 people in less than 24 hours.
In northern Ghana, more than 300,000 people have been uprooted by devastating downpours.
In East Africa, meanwhile, hundreds of thousands have been displaced and scores killed in Uganda, Sudan, Kenya, and Ethiopia (see map).
This map below from ClimateHotMap.org shows some areas which are impacted differently by the variability in local, regional and continental climate.
Pictures of World Water Crisis from Time.com
Dried Up Seabed
The Aral Sea has lost two-thirds of its volume because its source rivers were diverted for cotton irrigation during the Soviet era. Once the fourth-largest lake in the world, it is now a dusty graveyard of rusting shipwrecks.
The global economic, food and climate change crises have hit African women the hardest, according to a report from a delegation of African and United Nations female officials attending a conference on gender equality.
“When we look at the GDPs of all African countries, they are between five and seven per cent [in the recent past… but this present crisis is going to erode all those gains that have been made,” Isatou Njie Saidy, Vice-President of Gambia, told journalists at UN Headquarters in New York.
Africa is said to be one of the regions most vulnerable to the effects of climate change although it contributes minimally to the problem. The difficult social and economic situation of most Africans, especially women and children, worsens the situation, in Ghana for instance, women constitute about 51% of the population and about 30% of them are heads of households. . “They constitute 52% of the agricultural labour force, contribute 46% to the total GDP and produce 70% of subsistent crops. They play major roles in production and distribution” according to figures from the Ministry of Agriculture.
A wide variety of literature is available on the importance of agriculture to economic development in Africa and on the critical role that rural women play within this sector. Increasing attention is also being given to the role of smallholder subsistence agriculture in ensuring the food security of the continent, as 73% of the rural population consists of smallholder farmers (IFAD, 1993:6). In Sub-Saharan Africa, agriculture accounts for approximately 21% of the continent’s GDP and women contribute 60-80% of the labour used to produce food both for household consumption and for sale (FAO).
Climate Change and its impact on women
At the household level, the ability to adapt to changes in the climate depends on control over land, money, credit and tools; low dependency ratios; good health and personal mobility; household entitlements and food security; secure housing in safe locations; and freedom from violence. As such, women are often less able to adapt to climate change than men since they represent the majority of low-income earners, they generally have less education than men and are thus less likely to be reached by extension agents and they are often denied rights to property and land, which makes it difficult for them to access credit and agricultural extension services. Click on this link to get the full report (IDS 2008).
Role of Women in Agriculture
Benin
70% of the female population live in rural areas, where they carry out 60-80% of the agricultural work and furnish up to 44% of the work necessary for household subsistence.
Burkina Faso
Women constitute 48% of the labourers in the agricultural sector.
Congo
Women account for 73% of those economically active in agriculture and produce more than 80% of the food crops.
Mauritania
Despite data gaps, it is estimated that women cover 45% of the needs in rural areas.
Morocco
Approximately 57% of the female population participates in agricultural activities, with greater involvement in animal (68%) as opposed to vegetable production (46%). Studies have indicated that the proportion of agricultural work carried out by men, women and children is 42%, 45% and 14% respectively.
Namibia
Data from the 1991 census reveals that women account for 59% of those engaged in skilled and subsistence agriculture work, a and that women continue to shoulder the primary responsibility for food production and preparation.
Sudan
In the traditional sector, women constitute 80% of the farmers. Women farmers represent approximately 49% of the farmers in the irrigated sector and 57% in the traditional sector. 30% of the food in the country is produced by women.
Tanzania
98% of the rural women defined as economically active are engaged in agriculture and produce a substantial share of the food crops for both household consumption and for export
Zimbabwe
Women constitute 61% of the farmers in the Communal areas and comprise at least 70% of the labour force in these areas.
African women bear brunt of global crises, warn delegates at UN conference.
The vulnerability of the agriculture sector to both climate change and variability is well established and there is a consensus that changes in temperature and precipitation will result in:
Although estimates suggest global food production is robust, significant regional disparities are likely. Poorer developing countries are likely to be especially affected (UNDP)
Farmers
AS any farmer will tell you, the production of food relies greatly on the weather. Historically, weather fluctuated from year to year, while climate—the average weather conditions over time—remained much the same. Now, increases in the atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases have led to a climb in the global temperatures during the past 20 years. As a result, scientists, farmers, and government officials are struggling to understand what effects a permanently warmer climate will have on agriculture.
Farmers around the world have always talked and worried about the weather obsessively. Climate change makes these worries even more pronounced especially in the Global South.
Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), is unequivocal, in saying that the scientific evidence to climate change leaves us no doubt as to the dangers mankind is facing. One of the areas that are of great concern is agriculture, the impact of climate change will be devastating not only in the Global South but also in the North.
Climate and agriculture.
Land use worldwide accounts for an estimated 20 percent of the total greenhouse emissions. So basically farming is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions.
However the immediate problem according to most experts will be the agriculture’s vulnerability to climate change and the grave consequences this implies for the world’s poor and hungry. Drought, severe storms and flooding are hardly news for farmers in the developing world. They have been contending with such catastrophes since the beginnings of agriculture 10,000 years ago. But never before have so many rural people been so vulnerable. However the greater frequency of occurrence, especially in the tropics and the fundamental changes in rainfall patterns, rising temperatures etc will shorten growing seasons and reduce crop productivity. This will impact approximately 63 percent of the developing world’s total population.
A major reason for the vulnerability of developing country farmers to global climate change is the limit to options. The limitation has been gradually introduced by policies, institutions, and practices and as the changes in lifestyles coping strategies. This is amplified by the degradation of the soil, water, forests and other plant resources on which their livelihoods depend.
An estimated 500 million hectares of agricultural land are already degraded in Sub-Saharan Africa, this is the same land that feeds majority of its inhabitants. Agriculture on these lands is also rainfed. In a situation where the rainfall patterns are already quite erratic this is projected to worsen with climate change. Rural folk in developing countries depend on agriculture, the threat posed by climate change must be confronted as a priority and immediate action.
Global climate change poses an unprecedented challenge to humanity’s skill at maintaining viable livelihoods under highly diverse and variable climatic and environmental conditions.
Some Research Findings
Models have shown that in Africa maize, wheat and wild relatives will be impacted negatively by climate change. The models have also shown that there is a lot of local variability based on the micro-ecosystems. But as a generall trend, while the population in Africa is expanding, the food production system is increasingly under pressure and most important urgent question is how to deal with the projected decline of the cereals (Global Climate Change; Can Agriculture Cope? CGIAR).
December 6, 2007 - Representatives from 190 nations are meeting in Bali, Indonesia from December 3 – 14 to address challenges linked to global climate change. The meeting marks the start of negotiations leading to what the United Nations hopes will be a renewal and extension of the Kyoto Protocol. A delegation from the World Bank, led by President Robert B. Zoellick, will join the conference.
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On the eve of the global gathering, the World Bank’s lead climate change specialist for Africa and a member of the Bali delegation Aziz Bouzaher discussed the impact of climate change on Africa, and Bank actions to help client countries adapt to and mitigate it. How is the World Bank’s Africa Region responding to climate change? AB: The Africa region is responding swiftly, as is the entire institution, to the emerging needs linked to climate change. Africa is particularly vulnerable to climate change because of a number of things: the high dependence on natural resources, the low availability of infrastructure, the extent of poverty and the low level of institutional capacity to respond. The region is also predicted to be hardest hit in terms of catastrophic natural disasters. So we are developing a robust strategy and will be consulting with our clients and partners along the way. That strategy is to mainstream climate change into our operations and develop capacity to respond quickly – and effectively – to client needs.We have a framework with four pillars: The core pillar is adaptation. If the climate changes, you have to adapt. This pillar covers agriculture, energy, health, land management, forestry, biodiversity and fisheries, disaster preparedness, and coastal areas. The second pillar is building institutional knowledge and strengthening country capacity so that institutions are better able to deal with climate change. Third is to take advantage of mitigation opportunities, in other words to reduce emissions. The fourth and final pillar is to mobilize financing (including from the International Development Association, the World Bank Group’s concessional lending arm) and piloting new, innovative market-based carbon instruments to help our countries gain access to new funding sources. Is this strategy part of the Region’s larger ongoing work?
AB: A lot of the response to climate change is already built into current Bank policies and programs. For example, in Madagascar which is prone to cyclones, we are working on developing disaster preparedness. We are building the capacity and the tools and policies for the country to be better prepared. In some of our work on agriculture and water management, we are dealing with issues of drought and of the predicted high variability in water resources due to climate variability. In the energy sector, we have decidedly moved toward more clean energy. Our work on biofuels is contributing to the reduction of emissions. We also have analytical work going on at the regional level. For instance, we are incorporating climate change into water resources management at the river-basin level. The Niger, Zambezi, Nile, and Congo basins provide water for drinking, irrigation, hydropower, and environmental services. We are collecting information on the impact of climate change in these basins, and are building on this work to give us a view in other key areas of Africa. Basically, we are intensifying the work already being done to deal with variability and long-term change in the climate. We are also looking anew at our pipeline of projects systematically to ensure that we start a more robust incorporation of climate change issues. Why should Africa be concerned about climate change? AB: Climate change is a core development issue for Africa. There are millions of poor people who will be impacted. The potential cost of inaction could be significant and could undermine much of the progress that has been achieved, pushing even more people below the poverty line. What are the implications of climate change for African economies? AB: Africa has recorded solid economic growth. According to the Bank’s 2007 African Development Indicators, o ver the past decade, Africa has recorded an average growth rate of 5.4 percent. It’s important that this growth and its positive impact on livelihoods is sustained and made resilient to climate risk. How are governments making policy changes to combat climate change? AB: A lot of countries are developing their own adaptation strategies. They are developing National Adaptation Action Plans (NAPAs). The recommendations in these NAPAs will begin to find their way into Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers and national development plans. This also will be reflected into the Bank’s new generation of Country Assistance Strategies. Is the region receiving the resources it needs to help cut emissions? The plan is to help the region get access to innovative forms of carbon financing, including payment for environmental services and new areas such as avoiding deforestation and reducing land degradation. By reducing deforestation and land degradation you actually cut emissions, but at the same time you provide funding for adaptation and livelihoods. This is a better, and more sustainable, model for development as a whole. What is the importance of the Bank’s participation in the Bali conference? The Bank hopes the Bali meeting will chart the way forward on the issue of climate change. The predictions are that Africa will bear the brunt of climate change. We are committed to using all available instruments – financial, technical, and policy-oriented – to help client countries adapt to climate change and achieve low-carbon pathways to sustainable development Is climate change solely an environmental problem? Climate change is a core development issue. It’s not another environmental or an add-on issue. A lot of good development is good for dealing with climate change. Providing access to water and sanitation, supporting livelihoods, sustainable management of resources, all of this is good development. At the same time we recognize that Africa is one of the most vulnerable areas of the world — and is the least emitter — so adaptation becomes the core of the region’s climate change strategy. |
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