The problem
Small-scale farmers, who often rely on rain-fed agriculture, are bearing the brunt of the climate crisis, with very little support to adapt to climate extremes.
Increased temperatures, reduced rainfall and more frequent extreme weather events are reducing small-scale farmers’ yields, incomes and food security.
Many small-scale farmers have limited knowledge on climate-smart agricultural practices and lack access to the high-quality inputs, such as seeds for drought-tolerant crops, they need to adapt to climate change.
Female farmers have the lowest access to resources and are the most vulnerable to climate change.
The opportunity
Farm Africa’s experience has shown that with access to the right inputs such as improved seeds, training on climate-smart agricultural practices, and access to finance and markets, farmers can increase yields by three times, and increase household incomes by 50% even in the face of climate change.
Increased productivity reduces the need to expand farming land, which reduces deforestation and therefore reduces carbon emissions. Meanwhile, improved post-harvest handling of crops reduces emissions from food loss.
Planting trees can draw down carbon from the atmosphere while building farms’ resilience to weather extremes.
Diversification is important to reducing vulnerability to climate extremes. Farmers rearing livestock as well as growing a range of crops have less chance of losing everything when droughts or floods hit.
Rearing livestock such as goats and camels, which are more resilient to drought, ensures pastoralists and agro-pastoralists sustain their livelihoods in the face of climate change.
The outcome
When rural communities adopt climate-smart agricultural practices, it not only reduces poverty and food insecurity, but helps to mitigate carbon emissions through increased carbon sequestration.
This is an important consideration given that food systems account for a third of total man-made greenhouse gas emissions heating up our planet.
Investment in climate-smart agriculture also empowers farmers to protect and restore biodiversity and sustainably manage watersheds.
How we act on climate change
Farm Africa supports rural communities in eastern Africa to adapt to climate extremes and to reduce agriculture’s contribution to climate change. Our support includes:
- Introducing regenerative agriculture practices such as using mulch and manure, minimum tillage, micro-dosing of fertilisers and intercropping, which improve soil health and retain moisture in the soil, enabling farmers to boost their yields.
- Improving storage and drying of crops to reduce food loss and waste.
- Expanding access to financial services so that farmers can access credit to invest in improved seeds and fertilisers needed to grow drought-tolerant crops.
- Helping farmers reduce their risk by diversifying the crops they grow; rearing livestock as well as growing crops; and setting up secondary non-farming businesses.
- Introducing agroforestry, meaning farmers plant trees alongside their crops, which improves soil fertility and removes carbon from the atmosphere.
- Supporting communities to switch to fuel-efficient cookstoves that burn less firewood.
- Establishing carbon credit schemes where communities earn additional income for planting trees or reducing deforestation.
- Working with drought-affected pastoralists to regenerate degraded rangelands.
- Helping forest-based communities to develop forest-friendly businesses so they can earn money from the sale of forest coffee or honey, while reducing deforestation.
- Targeting assistance to reach female farmers, who are most vulnerable to climate change.
- Promoting the rearing of drought resilient livestock like goats and camels
The latest on climate change action
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