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Herald Reporter
Farmers will not adopt climate change mitigation practices if there are trade-offs against farm productivity or food security, a senior Government official has said.

Speaking during a workshop in which the Ministry of Environment, Water and Climate is consulting to come up with Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), Agritex principal director Mr Joseph Gondo said smallholder farmers should be incentivised to contribute to climate change mitigation.

The INDCs are climate change mitigation actions, strategies or policies that result in the reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases and the consequent slowing down of global warming.

“To make mitigation attractive, new practices must provide tangible benefits and be linked to improvements adapting to climate change,” he said.

Mr Elisha Moyo from the Climate Change Management Department said the process to develop an INDCs should enable climate change to be linked and aligned to other national priorities such as sustainable development and poverty reduction.

“Sending a credible signal regarding future plans to mitigate can stimulate investment, promote technological innovation and engage the private sector.

“Submission of an INDC may also allow for access to possible incentives, such as access to market mechanisms, created under the 2015 Agreement, as well as capacity building support,” he said.

“Designing agricultural investment and policy to provide upfront finances and longer-term rewards for mitigation practices will help reach large numbers of farmers than specialised mitigation intervention,” he said.

He said climate finance could provide support to smallholder farmers in different forms including a transition fund to reimburse costs of adoption and address lack of credit. It could also be used to pay for ecosystem service where upfront finance is not available and coverage of insurance to reduce risks.

Mr Gondo said climate change funds could also be used for capacity building and transactional costs to cover aggregating of smallholders, measurement, reporting and verification and training of extension agents as well as in ecological agriculture.

“The major policy issues as regards mitigation and adaptation relate to investments for adoption of appropriate practices, incentives for adopting practices, supporting research and development of appropriate technologies and practices and capacity development of support institutions.

“The thrust for Zimbabwe should be adaptation and promoting climate smart agriculture,” he said.

Mr Elisha Moyo from the Climate Change Management Department said the process to develop an INDCs should enable climate change to be linked and aligned to other national priorities such as sustainable development and poverty reduction.

“Sending a credible signal regarding future plans to mitigate can stimulate investment, promote technological innovation and engage the private sector.

“Submission of an INDC may also allow for access to possible incentives, such as access to market mechanisms, created under the 2015 Agreement, as well as capacity building support,” he said.

He said preparation of INDCs should provide the opportunity to clearly communicate a country’s contribution and means of implementation, as well as possibly highlight needs and priorities.