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Climate Smart Agriculture Key to Increase crop yields

 



Quality Agriculture Extension services key to attaining Climate Smart Agriculture.

By Raphael Banda

In most African countries and beyond, farming is a lifeline. This is owing to the fact that it feeds families, supports local economies, and preserves cultural identities passed down through previous and current generations.

However, the past few decades, this sustenance has come under increasing threat from something beyond any farmer’s control known as climate change.

Its effects have made rainfall unpredictable; seasons commence late or not at all in some parts of the continent. Crops that once thrived now struggle. For millions of smallholder farmers including the over 2.5 million registered farmers in Zambia, the impact has been demoralizing.

Despite the setback, a new wave of hope has emerged in the form of Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) which is a practical, proven, and people-centered approach that is helping farmers fight back and attain maximum crop yields.

Climate-Smart Agriculture is not a single solution but a set of farming practices that help farmers adapt to changing weather, grow more food, and protect the environment it is also called farming with nature.

This approach involves drought-resistant crops, crop rotation, agroforestry (growing trees alongside crops), and improved livestock feeding, and using water more efficiently.

In some selected parts of Africa, countries like Malawi, Kenya and Zambia research indicate that farmers using CSA techniques are seeing real results as evidenced by the good crop yields from drought-tolerant maize or cassava varieties, many households are now harvesting crops even in dry times within out necessarily depending on rain-fed agriculture.

Therefore, to continue seeing more benefits of climate smart agriculture, more measures need to be put in place to enhance productivity and crop yields. In countries like Zambia that suffered severe drought during the 2023/2024 farming season, strategies should be put in place to promote climate smart agriculture.

Among the immediate measures, The ministry of Agriculture(Zambia) need to employ more agriculture camp extension officers to bridge the ratio gap between farmers and  extension officers (one extension officer currently servicing more than 1500 farmers).

The writer understands that the Ministry of Agriculture made an assurance to employ but there is need to expedite the process.

In addition, Governments, NGOs, private sector players, and communities all have a role to play. We all need to invest in farmer training, improve access to climate-resilient seeds and tools, and support policies that put smallholder farmers at the center of climate solutions.

The media also need Agriculture and environmental desks set up if there is none and enhance media coverage using different strategies of generating content.

About the author:

Mr. Raphael Banda (small scale farmer).

-Media trainer and communication strategist

-MA in Strategic Communications for Development

- MA Climate Change Reporting

- BA Communications and Journalism

- DIP Journalism and PR

- Certificate Agriculture Reporting

-bandaraphael55@gmail.com +260979208286

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