25 Apr 2018

When Botswana gained independence in 1966, the agricultural sector was the mainstay of the economy, contributing about 40 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). 

However, this has changed and the sector now accounts for less than five per cent of the GDP. 

While the contribution of the extractive sector has been attributed for this decline, the sector continues to play a key role in the economic livelihoods of rural households.

Subsistence farmers continue to eke out a living from the land to support their families and meet their social obligations. 

However, 51 years after independence these farmers are faced with a herculean task to turn arable farming around. Low and variable rainfall is a characteristic feature of every ploughing season, coupled with incessant drought that leads to poor yields. 

In Borolong, a few kilometres west of Francistown, Mr Oageng Masuputsa knows this situation all too well. 

A middle-aged arable subsistence farmer who ploughs maize, sorghum, millet, groundnuts, watermelons and sweet reed, has been on the receiving end of the harsh climatic conditions that characterise Botswana. 

Despite the sector having always been about uncertainties and adaptation to changing climatic patterns, he believes things have changed for the worst in the last 30 years with low and unreliable rainfall, prolonged droughts and heat waves.

To him the story of the changing weather patterns over the last three decades is a personal journey that strikes at the core of rural livelihoods.  

Many subsistence farmers in rural areas belong to low income families and depend solely on the agricultural produce for their upkeep. Most of these farmers are vulnerable to climate change as they are engaged in climatically sensitive tasks such as securing food and water, which ensure food security and household well-being.

Mr Masuputsa explains that the last decades have come with many changes in the agricultural sector and it has become clear to subsistence arable farmers that the climate is changing for the worst.

 “As a young boy, we used to prepare the land for ploughing around September and by Christmas we started harvesting crops such as beans, maize and sweet reed. However, this has changed and the differences in the weather patterns have been consistent over a long period. In 2017, by Christmas it had not rained and the rains only came in February 2018,” he added. 

He, however, noted that despite the erratic rains, he decided to defy the changing climatic conditions and ploughed in November though the crops took long to germinate. 

 Discussions with the elderly who have been engaged in agriculture, he noted, demonstrate that his farming area used to receive above normal rainfall and that small farmers thrived. 

The frequency of rainfall, Masuputsa highlighted, is unpredictable and has also been accompanied by extensive heat and heavy downpours, which make both ploughing and weeding difficult to undertake. In other years, he mentioned, there is little or no rainfall at all, while flooding has become a common occurrence.  

“This change results in varying negative impacts on the weather patterns and the environment which we depend on for our livelihoods, and also culminate in increased temperatures, low, erratic and unreliable rainfall which may lead to flooding. ,” he said.

The unpredictable heavy rains result in crop destruction and an increase in uncontrollable pests, he added.  

This form of climate variability, he added is forcing them to change their farming methods and shift their ploughing seasons to coincide with the new rainfall patterns. He also notes that for any subsistence arable farmer to succeed adaptation is necessary, hence the need to focus on drought resistant crops to avoid crop failure.

Mr Masuputsa asserted that to deal with the climate variables he has resorted to mixing crops such as maize and groundnuts. Agricultural demonstrators, he explained, have been encouraging farmers on mitigation strategies and adaptation to climate change impacts.

Many young people have migrated to urban areas in search of opportunities in the formal employment sector.  

For Mr Masuputsa, the onus is on farmers to deal with the impacts of climate change and mitigate them. Though he said subsistence arable farmers have developed intimate knowledge of the prevailing climatic conditions, Mr Masuputsa noted that this knowledge has never been more relevant than now.

 “We need to be more observant of the weather patterns and come up with mitigation measures as these climate variables affect our economic livelihoods,” he highlighted.

Consequently, he encouraged other farmers to take advantage of the early rains because experience had shown that sometimes after these, it never rains again.

According to the Global Environmental Facility, an operating entity of the financial mechanism to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which helps tackle the planet’s most pressing environmental problems, the impact of rising temperatures can be seen through more extreme weather patterns, diminishing water resources and crop yields.

Consequently, it notes that the most vulnerable populations in rural areas are those least able to cope with these changes. I

t also encourages countries to focus on adaptation, especially the poorest countries to build resilience against future changes and fight poverty.  

A climate change adaptation and mitigation practitioner at the Climate Exploration Hub, Mr Obakeng Sethamo has noted in an interview recently that the relationship between climate change and agriculture cannot be overemphasised.

Due to its impact on the rainfall seasons and temperatures, he observed that climate change affects directly the ability of the agricultural sector to optimise performance.

Agriculture, Mr Sethamo asserted is extremely vulnerable to climate change as higher temperatures eventually reduce yields of desirable crops, while encouraging weed and pest proliferation. 

“Changes in precipitation patterns increases the likelihood of increased crop failures and production declines. The overall impact of climate change on agriculture are expected to be negative, threatening global food security, especially the ability of the subsistence farmer to survive. This also means that the ability of the country to achieve and safeguard food security will be highly challenged,” he said.

Consequently, Mr Sethamo explained that while initiatives such as smart agriculture or climate resilient methodologies can be practiced at farm level, most of the support will have to come from government structures and this called for innovation on the part of those trusted with the agricultural sector.

Subsistence farmers, he added, heavily rely on government support, hence the need for government initiatives to increase local production and prioritise it over imports through incentives such as small grants, provision of agricultural inputs, strong institutional support and guidance relating to finances, assets and technology and improved extension services. This, he noted, would enhance the quantity and quality of local produce.

The climate change practitioner also observed that the enhancement of farm-based livelihoods through improvement of farm-to-market infrastructure and the creation of small agro-industries and development of markets for agricultural produce within districts with high agricultural output will be essential.

 Further, Mr Sethamo called for the introduction of programmes that promote improved farming practices, drought resistant early maturing crop varieties and supply of inputs that increase crop yield and productivity. 

This, he mentioned, should include the capacitation of extension service providers to implement improved land management, moisture and soil conservation and climate information services usage.  

“Extension service providers remain the best resource at the disposal of farmers in the Botswana structure, retooling them will go a long way in improving the chances of local farmers in addressing climate change impacts,” he posited.

The University of Botswana in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism recently hosted an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC Lead Author meeting, where high level climate change experts from nearly 40 countries perused one of the most significant climate change reports, IPCC SR1.5, assessing the feasibility by the international community to meet the ambition of the Paris Agreement, which is to limit the increase in global average temperature to well below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius. ENDS