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Agriculture Reporter
THE Food and Agriculture Organisation has launched a programme aimed at addressing crop production and post-harvest systems to reduce the effects of climate change which is affecting most farmers in southern Africa. The project is expected to contribute towards improvement of household and national food and nutrition security in southern Africa through better management of climatic risks by smallholder farmers.

The project would be spearheaded by the University of Zimbabwe and the Soil Fertility Consortium for Southern Africa with sponsorship from the European Union.

Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister, Dr Joseph Made hailed the programme saying it was an example of a multi-sectoral approach towards solving a national and regional challenge.

In a speech read on his behalf by permanent secretary, Mr Ringson Chitsiko, Dr Made said rain-fed small holder agriculture was the mainstay of rural household livelihoods and national economies in the region.

Agriculture contributes over 90 percent of direct and indirect employment in the region despite the multiple challenges being faced by the farmers.

“This renders our populations vulnerable to the negative impact of climate change and variability. A combination of increasing droughts, poor seasonal rainfall distribution and increasing temperatures have made agricultural planning difficult for farmers, especially small holder .

“This further adds to existing stress factors that include inherently infertile soils, poor market and credit access against the background of HIV and Aids impact on agricultural labour,” he said.

Minister Made said the little harvest that farmers achieved are often eroded by high post-harvest losses of up to 30 percent, undermining food and nutrition security in the country and the region as a whole.

FAO representative, Dr Lewis Hove said production of cereals has dropped to less than a tonne per hectare despite the available good varieties.

He attributed the drop in production to the use of inappropriate management techniques at farm and off farm level and said focus should be put more on increasing production and reducing post harvest losses.

“We should also improve soils, seed, human knowledge and skills to increase production,” he said.
The project is expected to benefit 3 000 small holder farmers in Zimbabwe, Malawi, Madagascar and South Africa.