BY MTHANDAZO NYONI
THERE is an urgent need for implementing research-informed climate-smart farming policies in Zimbabwe, given its international and national climate change commitments, a new report has revealed.
In a paper titled: Simulation models alert on impacts of climate change and need for smarter farming policies in Zimbabwe, five researchers said integrated simulation modelling continues to point to huge impending social and economic impacts from climate change in the country.
These are Sabine Homann-Kee Tui from the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics in Malawi; Roberto Valdivia from the Department of Applied Economics in the USA; Gevious Sisito from Matopos Research Institute; Thulani Dube from Lupane State University; and Busani Bafana, a science writer.
“The impacts were measured with various indicators for economic development, nutrition and food security and reveal that more than half the population is vulnerable to adverse effects of climate change,” the paper reads in part.
“The outcomes point to an urgent need for implementing “research-informed” climate-smart farming policies in Zimbabwe, given its international and national climate change commitments.”
Agriculture accounts for 20% of Zimbabwe’s gross domestic product.
It has potential for growth with the right investment and policy environment, said the report.
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However, there is a mismatch between specific farming systems, proposed policies, climate-change adaptation interventions and the allocation of financial and technical resources.
As such, the paper said research-based decision support tools can help implement effective policies towards climate proofing Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector and increasing its resilience to shocks and stresses by envisioning the future of sustainable approaches to food security and economic growth.
In response to the need for research-informed climate-change adaptation actions, a workshop was recently organised on the theme Building Agriculture’s Future Scenarios: Climate Change Adaptation and Sustainability.
The goal was to inform agricultural development and climate change adaptation at local-to-national levels and address policy decision gaps.
A number of future scenarios, that is, representative agricultural pathways (RAPs) were presented to guide decision makers in Zimbabwe in understanding the impact of policy decisions for climate change adaptation planning processes in the agricultural sector.
The RAPs, according to the paper, illustrated that it is important to get agricultural policies right to support the transition to resilient and sustainable development and adaptation strategies by involving all actors through farm and market dynamics, capacity building and networking, influencing policy and designing policies and coping mechanisms.
“A critical challenge was identified to bridge the gap between policy, research and what is happening on the ground, so that implemented strategies speak to challenges in climate change adaptation, within particular farming systems,” the paper reads in part.
“The current gaps are a result of an unstable political and economic environment, competition over resources and institutional weaknesses. As such, policy processes are fragmented top-down with limited interface to using research-based evidence.”
The paper said policy makers needed to invest in tools that enable policy to action processes based on research needs.
Researchers on the other hand, should involve policy makers in the research design, execution, and results process to allow uptake of key messages that can be used for decision making, it opined.
This two-way process requires capacity building on both fronts, it said.
