It is widely acknowledged that agricultural production in Africa will decline significantly in the years to come as adverse weather events become the norm. Consequently, agriculture is often considered a victim of climate change while its contribution to greenhouse gas emissions has largely been overlooked. Indeed, agriculture is the primary source of methane (from livestock) and nitrous oxide (from inorganic fertilisers), which are two of the most potent greenhouse gases.⁽²⁾ The preoccupation with agriculture as a victim of climate change has led to a focus on adaptation strategies while mitigation measures have not been adequately addressed. This paper outlines a few ways in which smallholder farmers in Africa can benefit from enhancing climate change mitigation through incorporating low carbon technologies and techniques into their farming practices.

Low carbon farming techniques and technologies

Climate change mitigation refers to activities which reduce emissions into the atmosphere, primarily carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.⁽³⁾ The role of smallholder farmers in climate change mitigation has not been sufficiently incorporated onto Africa’s climate change agenda. Indeed the majority of developing countries are relatively low-intensity producers of carbon dioxide and, as such, have contributed significantly less to global warming compared to industrialised countries. In addition, with most regions already experiencing extreme weather events, the focus has been on finding ways to protect livelihoods through various adaptation strategies. However, while it is imperative to adapt to climate related changes, it is of even greater importance to ensure that these changes are not exacerbated so as to facilitate a sustainable future for generations to come. According to one report on climate change mitigation, agriculture is responsible for more than 30% of human induced emissions.⁽⁴⁾ As such, African countries cannot be completely exempt from mitigation efforts.

Zero tillage

In recent years, the need to adopt farming techniques and technologies which reduce the emission of green house gases has been gaining traction. Carbon farming refers to a variety of farming techniques geared towards this end. One way in which farmers can conserve soil carbon deposits is through conservation tillage (or zero tillage) whereby farmers plant seeds without ploughing the land and as such with minimal disturbance to the soil. The age-old farming technique of using ploughs removes substantial quantities of carbon from the soil which are then swept away as runoff and, as such, contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.⁽⁵⁾ Conservation tillage facilitates the retention of carbon in the soil, in the form of soil organic matter which enhances soil structure and also makes the soil more resistant to drought and erosion.

Zero tillage is essentially a pro-poor technique as it enables resource-poor farmers who cannot afford farming inputs such as ploughs to produce considerably high yields. It is also especially beneficial in regions with poor soils, which constitute the majority of rural areas in Africa. Further, by disturbing the soil as little as possible, this farming technique enables the restoration of degraded land while promoting biodiversity. In addition, zero tillage allows farmers to use very little fertiliser or none at all which not only helps to reduce the emission of methane but also lowers costs for farmers. The benefits of the zero till system are evident from one case study of a Zimbabwean village in the Mashonaland West Province where subsistence farmers were facing starvation due to recurrent droughts. The adoption of zero tillage has enabled this community of about 300 farmers to harvest sizeable yields in spite of the worsening rainfall patterns.⁽⁶⁾

Tree restoration

Tree restoration is another important mitigation strategy which can benefit smallholder farmers while also enhancing carbon storage. According to a report by the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the reduction or prevention of deforestation is “the mitigation option with the largest and most immediate carbon stock impact in the short term.”⁽⁷⁾ In Africa, where more than 60% of the population derives its livelihood from agriculture, the conversion of forests for agricultural activities is a priority. There is also increased demand for land to accommodate growing rural populations. Reforestation therefore presents an opportunity cost to smallholder farmers whose livelihood depends directly on the land. The challenge is finding ways of compensating farmers in such a way that encourages tree planting, bearing in mind that the financial desperation of the poor often results in them having relatively high discount rates.

Discount rates are used to compare costs and benefits which occur at different time periods. The more one values a dollar received today over a dollar received in the future, the higher his/her discount rate. In the present discussion, an individual with a high discount rate does not perceive the long term benefits of tree planting to be important or high enough to deter deforestation in the current time period. He or she would rather clear the land and grow crops to feed the family and sell some of the produce in the next few months. One way of circumventing this problem is through the use of monetary incentives. If farmers receive a cash payment for every tree they grow and nurture this might encourage tree planting. The use of financial incentives has proven successful in promoting reforestation under Kenya’s Green Belt Movement through which communities have planted over 45 million trees in Kenya since 1977.⁽⁸⁾

There is also an opportunity for an increase in local incomes through the selling of carbon credits under the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). The latter has created an avenue for industrialised countries to invest in forest-based carbon sequestering activities in developing countries in exchange for carbon offsets that count against emission reduction targets specified by the Kyoto Protocol.⁽⁹⁾ Resource-poor farmers in Africa can take advantage of this initiative by embarking on reforestation and afforestation projects and, as such, open their communities up to financial inflows. An example of the economic benefit of such projects to local communities can be seen in the Nhambita Community Carbon Project in Mozambique where local households receive a cash payment of US$ 242.60 per hectare (ha) over seven years for carbon sequestered on their farms.⁽¹⁰⁾ Similarly in Tanzania, farmers involved in carbon sequestration projects receive US$ 0.20 per tree per year.⁽¹¹⁾ A 2008 review of the ongoing projects showed that the majority were located in East Africa.⁽¹²⁾ There is therefore a need for more African countries to get involved in these projects to make use of this valuable opportunity which can lead to an increase in local incomes in resource-poor areas.

Treadle pumps

Farmers will experience increasing difficulty in accessing already scarce water resources for agricultural activities as protracted droughts become the norm. Irrigation will soon become a matter of necessity for a majority of farmers in northern and southern Africa which are predicted to become much hotter and dryer over the next 100 years.⁽¹³⁾ Opportunities exist for the introduction of alternative power sources in improving rural water supply to reduce the use of diesel pumps as has been the case in India were treadle pumps have been introduced to enable farmers to grow crops outside the monsoon season.⁽¹⁴⁾ Instead of using diesel pumps which require a large volume of diesel and as such contribute significantly to carbon emissions, the treadle pump (which is a small mechanical pump) uses human power thus reducing carbon emissions immensely. Manufacturers of the pump estimate that it results in a saving of approximately 477 kg of carbon dioxide per pump per year. In addition to the carbon reduction, there is a financial saving as farmers will no longer have to hire expensive diesel pumps.⁽¹⁵⁾

What mechanisms can be used to encourage the use of low carbon techniques?

There is a general lack of awareness and information among smallholder farmers regarding the causes and risks of climate change, let alone mitigation strategies. In many African villages, farmers are puzzled by the worsening rainfall patterns and recurrent droughts. Many farmers attribute the increased frequency in droughts and inconsistency in rainfall to God and as a sign of the end times. As a result they are of the view that there is little they can do about the situation. Commenting on this issue one Zimbabwean farmer notes, “Most people still think the changes in rainfall patterns are a result of a curse put on us by the traditional gods. They are convinced the best way to get back dependable rains is to appease our ancestors, but even though they have been doing that the results are not pleasing, hence the cycle of hunger.”⁽¹⁶⁾

It is not surprising that many smallholder farmers are not aware of the actual causes and impacts of climate change. One of the main challenges they face even in the absence of climate change, is limited access to information and extension support. It has been argued that policy responses to climate change have been driven primarily by debates among scientists while the insights of poor people living on the frontline have been largely ignored.⁽¹⁷⁾

A fundamental starting point in encouraging the use of low carbon farming techniques is through information dissemination and capacity-building. This can be achieved through workshops and seminars where academics, development agencies and government departments provide information on climate change, and on concepts such as reduced emissions through deforestation and degradation (REDD) and other carbon sequestering methods. This platform would be used to address farmers’ concerns and to show how communities elsewhere in the region or in the world are benefiting from the adoption of various low carbon techniques. It is also important to realise the importance of creating a platform for the exchanging of ideas among the farmers themselves, given that they are more familiar with their communities.

Another useful method is the use of progressive farmers. These are ‘successful’ farmers who are early adopters of new crop technologies and who subsequently produce substantial yields in most farming seasons. If these farmers begin to use low carbon techniques other farmers are likely to do the same.

Concluding remarks

One of the main challenges in promoting these and other techniques is disseminating relevant information to smallholder farmers. There are millions of farmers who are not familiar with several concepts relating to climate change. As a starting point, it is imperative that farmers gain a sound understanding of the causes and impacts of climate change given the predicted economic impacts in the years to come. In order for farmers to buy into the idea of conservation farming, the benefits should be well articulated. It is important to stress that these benefits are not only for the present generation, but for generations to come.

NOTES:

(1) Contact Feri Gwata through Consultancy Africa Intelligence's Enviro Africa Unit (enviro.africa@consultancyafrica.com).
(2) Zero Carbon Farm website, ‘Why Zero?’, paragraph 2, http://www.zerocarbonfarm.com.
(3) Practical Action Briefing, ‘Mitigating Climate Change’, http://practicalaction.org.
(4) Ibid.
(5) Michele Scrimenti, ‘ Planting seeds of low carbon farming means spreading the word’, Global Times, 1 Feb 2011, http://business.globaltimes.cn.
(6) RBM Solicitors, ‘Zero tillage making a difference to Hurungwe farmers’, The Zimbabwean , 7 June 2010 , http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk.
(7) UNFCC, ‘Reducing emissions from deforestation in developing countries: approaches to stimulate action’, 2005, http://unfccc.int.
(8) The Green Belt Movement, http://greenbeltmovement.org.
(9) Jindal, R., Swallow, B., & Kerr, J., 2008. ‘Forestry-based carbon sequestration projects in Africa: potential benefits and challenges’, Natural Resources Forum, 32, pp.116-130.
(10) Ibid.
(11) Ibid.
(12) Ibid.
(13) Zadek, S. et al, 2010. ‘The South African Renewables Initiative: Advancing South Africa’s Low Carbon Industrial and Economic Strategy’. Working paper prepared for the Government of the Republic of South Africa.
(14) JP Morgan Climate Care, ‘Treadle Pumps in India’, 2009 http://www.jpmorganclimatecare.com.
(15) Ibid.
(16) ‘Not knowing when to plant’, IRIN News, 12 November 2010, http://www.partnership-africa.org.
(17) Khamis, M., 2006. ‘Climate change and smallholder farmers in Malawi’. ActionAid International

Written by Feri Gwata ⁽¹⁾