IN ANY society, food security is critical because it is fundamental to human existence.
It can produce wide-ranging positive impacts, including economic growth and job creation, poverty reduction, trade opportunities, as well as improved health and healthcare.
Growth in the agriculture sector has been found to be at least twice as effective in reducing poverty as growth in other sectors.
Food insecurity decreases the ability of countries to develop their agricultural markets and economies.
In Zambia, food security is fundamentally dependent on small-scale farming communities that contribute about 80 percent of the country’s food basket.
But with the effects of climate change, smallholder farmers in Zambia have become increasingly vulnerable to risks of droughts and dry spells as the case currently is in the southern part of the country.
This has posed a significant challenge of food insecurity in the country as crops in areas affected by the dry spell have wilted due to high temperatures resulting in low moisture content.
Zambia, like other countries in the world, is likely to continue experiencing fluctuating weather conditions due to climate change.
This state of affairs calls for climate-risk adaptation measures to insulate smallscale farmers from weatherrelated shocks to help them remain resilient and continue producing food.
Therefore, the K11.5 million World Food Programme (WFP) project in Zambia which will benefit over 17,000 smallholder farmers could not have come at an opportune time than now.
The project seeks to strengthen smallholder farmers’ resilience to climate
crises and boosting the agrarians’ financial inclusion over the next two years.
The scaling-up venture financially supported by Citi Foundation, an arm of Citi Bank, promotes economic progress and improving livelihoods among low-income communities.
Under the project, Zambian small-scale farmers will be trained in financial literacy skills, agricultural practices, access to affordable credit, and risk insurance and forecasting services, according to WFP Zambia director Cissy Byenka.
This is an important undertaking for Zambia as it will greatly contribute to making our small-scale farmers climate-risk resilient and enhance our national food security.
We applaud WFP and Citi Bank for choosing Zambian smallholder farmers as beneficiaries of the project.
This will not only empower our farmers, but will also benefit the country in terms of food sufficiency even in times of droughts or dry spells.
Zambian farmers have not been spared by the impacts of climate change. As such, the project will go a long way in enhancing our food security and improving rural smallholder farmers’ incomes.
Climate change is the largest threat to Zambia’s food security situation today as it has potentially large and alarming consequences for our country.
Temperature and its associated seasonal patterns are critical components of our agricultural production system.
Consequently, rising temperatures associated with climate change will likely have a detrimental impact on our crop production, livestock, fisheries, and allied sectors.
Climate change affects food security through its impacts on all components of global, national, and local food production systems.
This is anticipated to affect all dimensions of food security; namely food availability, access to food, and food utilisation.
So, with the WFP project, we are hopeful that our smallholder farmers will be equal to the task of helping the country meet all dimensions of food security
WFP climate resilience project timely
IN ANY society, food security is critical because it is fundamental to human existence.
It can produce wide-ranging positive impacts, including economic growth and job creation, poverty reduction, trade opportunities, as well as improved health and healthcare.
Growth in the agriculture sector has been found to be at least twice as effective in reducing poverty as growth in other sectors.
Food insecurity decreases the ability of countries to develop their agricultural markets and economies.
In Zambia, food security is fundamentally dependent on small-scale farming communities that contribute about 80 percent of the country’s food basket.
But with the effects of climate change, smallholder farmers in Zambia have become increasingly vulnerable to risks of droughts and dry spells as the case currently is in the southern part of the country.
This has posed a significant challenge of food insecurity in the country as crops in areas affected by the dry spell have wilted due to high temperatures resulting in low moisture content.
Zambia, like other countries in the world, is likely to continue experiencing fluctuating weather conditions due to climate change.
This state of affairs calls for climate-risk adaptation measures to insulate smallscale farmers from weatherrelated shocks to help them remain resilient and continue producing food.
Therefore, the K11.5 million World Food Programme (WFP) project in Zambia which will benefit over 17,000 smallholder farmers could not have come at an opportune time than now.
The project seeks to strengthen smallholder farmers’ resilience to climate
crises and boosting the agrarians’ financial inclusion over the next two years.
The scaling-up venture financially supported by Citi Foundation, an arm of Citi Bank, promotes economic progress and improving livelihoods among low-income communities.
Under the project, Zambian small-scale farmers will be trained in financial literacy skills, agricultural practices, access to affordable credit, and risk insurance and forecasting services, according to WFP Zambia director Cissy Byenka.
This is an important undertaking for Zambia as it will greatly contribute to making our small-scale farmers climate-risk resilient and enhance our national food security.
We applaud WFP and Citi Bank for choosing Zambian smallholder farmers as beneficiaries of the project.
This will not only empower our farmers, but will also benefit the country in terms of food sufficiency even in times of droughts or dry spells.
Zambian farmers have not been spared by the impacts of climate change. As such, the project will go a long way in enhancing our food security and improving rural smallholder farmers’ incomes.
Climate change is the largest threat to Zambia’s food security situation today as it has potentially large and alarming consequences for our country.
Temperature and its associated seasonal patterns are critical components of our agricultural production system.
Consequently, rising temperatures associated with climate change will likely have a detrimental impact on our crop production, livestock, fisheries, and allied sectors.
Climate change affects food security through its impacts on all components of global, national, and local food production systems.
This is anticipated to affect all dimensions of food security; namely food availability, access to food, and food utilisation.
So, with the WFP project, we are hopeful that our smallholder farmers will be equal to the task of helping the country meet all dimensions of food security