How inequality in adapting to climate change is affecting farmers’ food stores
Marrieta Mwikali is preparing her half-acre land for the next planting season ahead of the anticipated short rains season. The Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD) expected the onset of the short rains season to occur between the fourth week of October and the first week of November. Ms Mwikali relies on such weather forecasts as rainfall is her only water source for farming even though it is not reliable in her Kaani village, Machakos County, one of the Arid and Semi-Arid Land regions in the country. She says that due to changes in weather patterns, agriculture has become unproductive, making it hard for her to grow enough food to feed her family. “Sometimes you can be all set with manure and seeds kept for the planting season, but the rains fail. You end up being disappointed,” says Ms Mwikali. Water is an essential requirement for farming. It is no wonder various United Nations bodies convening in Glasgow, Scotland in October 2021 appealed to countries to make water an integral part of the fight against climate change. A report on the global impacts of heat and water stress on food production published in June this year in the journal Scientific Reports shows that these two factors can lead to a six-14 per cent decline in food production by 2050. The uncertainties of relying on rainwater for agriculture are evidenced in the troubles that Ms Mwikali and other small-scale farmers in Machakos, who cannot afford irrigation, go through. For six years, the mother of two has been practising mixed farming of maize, beans and cowpeas, which require adequate rainfall for growth. When the Climate Action team visited Ms Mwikali last week, she was tending to withering crops on her farm under the scorching sun. She said she has been a victim of climate change. “After floods, the rainfall reduced, leading to lower agricultural yields. Even water harvesting has become a challenge because I harvested a little for my vegetables now that I don’t have enough water storage containers.” Ms Mwikali noted that things were better a few years ago, when she would harvest enough to feed her family, but not anymore. Her farm yields have significantly reduced over the past three years. For example, in April this year, she says she harvested only two bags of maize, one and a half bags of beans, and a bucket of cowpeas, which cannot sustain her family until the next harvest. “In the future, we will struggle more as farmers because of the short rains and floods. What I have in store now can sustain me for only two months,” Ms Mwikali expressed her food insecurity worries. According to scientists, legumes take roughly between 70-85 days to mature, which is almost three months. Maize, on the other hand, matures between three and four months depending on the different agroecological zones. Based on this maturity duration, Ms Mwikali, whose two children are currently in Form Four and Grade Six, is afraid that her food store will run empty, and she will be forced to depend on relief food for survival. “Farm food helps me a lot because when I have enough harvest, I don’t struggle with bills such as school fees, but when I don’t have food, my life turns upside down,” she told Climate Action. According to recent data from CARE, a leading humanitarian organisation fighting global poverty, women like Ms Mwikali are more concerned about climate change than men, and they are also more food-insecure. The analysis also demonstrates that despite being the most affected by climate change, women are consistently under-represented in disaster preparation, and they are far less likely than men to be asked about their needs. Emily Janoch, CARE’s associate vice-president of Design and Thought Leadership, highlighted the importance of preparing for extreme weather events and thinking about long-term recovery and resilience, especially for women. “People who have faced extreme weather events face food crisis for up to five years. That means we need better preparedness that includes women, and we need to think about long-term resilience and recovery,” he said. Contrary to Ms Mwikali’s farm, a few kilometres away, Climate Action is welcomed by cool breeze from a bamboo plantation at Peter Nzioka’s three-and-a-half-acre farm. Bamboo grass is known for purifying air and acting as a carbon sync. The grass also conserves and purifies water, enabling the soil to retain moisture that supports the growth of crops. While Mr Nzioka is also waiting for rain for the next planting season, he is less worried about food shortage, thanks to his experience in a food forest type of farming that allows him to have enough food year in, year out. Mr Nzioka consumes fresh food from his farm. “Food forest means diversity. I grow so many varieties, which are thriving together, so that at any given time, I have enough food to eat and it is not a must that I have seasonal crops,” explained Mr Nzioka. Walking on his farm in Kaani, mangoes in the flowering stage, cabbages in the tender stage, and kales that are almost ready for consumption catch our attention. He also has cassava and sweet potatoes. “I am still preparing my land for the rains like any other farmer, but I have some crops that are already thriving on the farm. I normally have crops in different stages of growth every month,” he said. His food forest farming gets a boost from Kiusyi, a seasonal river that borders his farm, which helps him to stop solely relying on rain-fed farming. The bamboos on his farm also come in handy. In arid and drought-prone areas, bamboos are valued for their ability to conserve water and soil moisture by reducing the evaporation rate. “Bamboo helps me to conserve water because they obscure direct sun, thus minimising the evaporation rate.” He also cuts down on the cost of farming as he uses manure from his poultry and goats. He also owns a seed bank from his previous harvests. “I use indigenous seeds because I can get the varieties I want anytime as opposed to going to the agro vet, where I don’t know the ecological zones of the seed varieties. Organic seeds are also locally adapted to the weather here,” explained Mr Nzioka. A State of Africa’s Environment 2024 report on water insecurity in Africa shows that African nations are water-insecure. Speaking in Nairobi in September during the launch of the report, Sunita Narain, director-general at Centre for Science and Environment, used an Indian slogan: “Catch water where it falls,” to emphasise the need to be innovative in matters water harvesting. “Hard water crisis is about our inability to build an affordable system of water management. Inclusivity and equity are critical for any water system to work; and we are talking about groundwater systems, increasing poverty because of water stress, and how heat stress will add to our water demand,” said Narain. According to the World Water Development Report released by the United Nations on March 22, 2020, global food production patterns would be fundamentally altered by climate change, causing food insecurity because of small shifts in seasonality and water availability. The report further highlighted that an increase in food prices would increase rural poverty. It is based on reports like these that Ms Mwikali and other women in Machakos and other parts of the country are worried about the future of farming now that they can’t afford any farming technologies.