Tough times ahead as maize, beans yields expected to drop

Maize and beans farmers could be staring at tough terms ahead, after experts predicted a drastic  drop in yields in the coming months.

A report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns that maize yields will drop by 30 per cent and beans 50 per cent in all traditional growing areas due to effects of climate.

The panel says the drop in yields is attributed to the current warming rates and erratic rainfall.

For now the farmers can only hang on hope that policy makers will decisively address the issue at the next UN climate talks later in the year in Cairo, Egypt.

 “This report is a dire warning about the consequences of inaction,” said Hoesung Lee, who chairs the panel.

He noted that the findings show that climate change is a mounting threat to the wellbeing and a healthy planet.

“Our actions today will shape how people adapt and respond to increasing climate risks,” he said in the report released last week.

 The report was released at a time agriculture experts, policy makers, representatives of Civil Society Organisations and farmer groups congregated in Naivasha for talks on how to forge a common position for the Cairo meeting in November, this year.

Adaptation funds

In Naivasha under the Africa Group of Negotiators (AGN) Strategy Meeting and Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture, the stakeholders admitted that climate change was compounding food insecurity on a continent already severely afflicted by hunger and malnutrition.

George Wamukoya, the AGN team leader noted that the Cairo climate summit, presents an opportunity for the continent to lobby for more adaptation funds designed for the agriculture sector.

“The November meeting is important for governments in the continent to push for financing of agriculture activities,” he said at the end of the three-day meeting organised to consolidate views from the 55 African countries represented by governments and experts.

In 2011 during the COP17 in Durban, a decision on agriculture was made, and according to Wamukoya since then, it has been a subject of discussion on how to enhance its positioning in the climate change discussions.

“The IPCC report has told us that due to climate change, our maize and beans yields will reduce drastically, yet those are the key crops our farmers plant,” he noted.

Wamukoya, further noted that there is need to look at how to get farmers, particularly those that farm crops that are sensitive to climate change to either move away from rain-fed agriculture to irrigation or look for an alternative crop – that will be able to cushion them in case of drought.

Kwame Ababio, a senior program officer of Climate Change and Environment at the African Union (AU) said that investments in farming practices that strike harmony with nature could offer a long-term solution to the continent’s endemic food insecurity.

“The emerging policy and scientific agreement in the continent, is that there is need to strengthen climate resilience of subsistence agriculture through adoption of appropriate irrigation technologies, use of compost manure and diversification,” he said noting that adhering to agro-ecological practices as advocated by the IPCC will increase adaptation strategies by farmers.

He said the IPCC’s sixth assessment report is clear that global warming has taken a toll on subsistence farming in Africa, thereby worsening hunger and rural poverty.

Also speaking at the Naivasha function, Veronica Ndetu-a co-ordinator of Climate Change Unit at the Ministry of Agriculture said there are several policy documents in Kenya that are directly addressing the issue of agro-ecology.

“Building the soil health to ensure that our soils are productive is one of the areas to be looked at,” Ndetu said.

She said that other findings have shown that the country’s soils are very low in carbon, and one of the issues of agroecology and building of soil health, is through sustainable land management.

On his part, Million Belay- the general coordinator of Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa said the continent’s ability to feed its growing population is hinged on scaling up investments to climate-proof subsistence farming and pastoralism.

Belay called for compensation of farmers and herders affected by drought besides encouraging them to play an active role in protecting ecosystems that are key to food, water and energy security.

The IPCC report observed that human-induced climate change, is causing dangerous and widespread disruption in nature and affecting the lives of billions of people around the world, despite efforts to reduce the risks. 

Heat waves

The Summary for Policymakers of the IPCC Working Group II report, Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability was approved on February 27, by 195 member governments of the IPCC, through a virtual session that was held over two weeks starting February 14.

It further recognised that increased heat waves, droughts and floods are already exceeding plants’ and animals’ tolerance thresholds, driving mass mortalities in species such as trees and corals.

These weather extremes are occurring simultaneously, causing cascading impacts that are increasingly difficult to manage.

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