By Malik Fahad
Kalungu – Uganda
The world is facing a daunting challenge – climate change. With unpredictable weather patterns, changing temperatures, and extreme natural disasters, communities must adapt and find ways to be resilient.
In Uganda, the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has taken a proactive approach to this problem. Through their efforts to improve climate change resilient measures in the country, they have trained over 720 farmers in Kalungu, a district in the Southwestern region, in climate adaptation and resilient agricultural practices.
For the farmers in this district, agriculture is not only a way of life but also their primary source of income. However, with the changing climate patterns, they have faced numerous challenges in recent years.
The erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts, and sudden floods have taken a toll on their crops and livestock, causing significant losses and affecting their livelihoods. The situation has become so dire that many farmers have had to abandon their land and look for alternative sources of income within and outside their communities.
According to Dr. Kennedy Igbokwe, the Climate Change Program Team Leader, realizing the gravity of the situation, FAO has stepped in to assist by establishing a farm field school strategy to train farmers in climate change adaptation measures.
The organization recognizes the importance of building resilience in communities, especially in those that are most vulnerable to climate change. To that end, however, they have implemented a training program to teach farmers in Kalungu district climate adaptation and resilient agricultural practices.
The program covers a wide range of topics, including soil conservation, water management, crop diversification, and sustainable farming methods. Well, the training program has been a tremendous success giving hope to the farmers and the results are already showing. And the farmers who have adopted the practices taught by the FAO are reporting better yields and a more reliable income source.
They are better equipped to face the challenges posed by the changing climate patterns and are more confident about their future. The success of the program has inspired other communities in the country to follow suit, and the FAO’s efforts have become a model for climate-resilient agriculture.
In his explanation, Dr. Igbokwe, says that while approximately 30% of Ugandans possess knowledge about climate change, a mere 10% or less put their knowledge into practice to mitigate the effects of climate change. This, he argues, is hindering the fight against the impact of climate change in the country.
The percentage of Ugandans who possess both knowledge and practical skills is still considerably low, according to the expert, and for the country to achieve resilience to climate change, its people need to have the necessary knowledge, skills, and institutional capacity.
“This can be achieved by working in groups since farmers require economic adaptation capacity to invest in their farms. Adapting to climate change comes with a cost, and that is why we are focusing on moving farmers from mere production to value addition, as part of our value chain development strategy,” he adds.
By acquiring skills in the production, processing, packaging, and marketing of their products, Igbokwe maintains that the farmers become capable of generating higher revenues and investing in irrigation and other good farming practices.
Moses Kayima, the Coordinator of Kalungu District Famers Association (KADIFA), collaborated with FAO in providing training to the farmers. The farmers were grouped under Farmer Field Schools from three sub-counties, namely Bukulula, Lwabenge, and Kyamulibwa, and were located in parishes such as Kiti, Bwesa, Bugomola, Mabuye, and Kitosi.
The official stated that they not only provided knowledge and skills but also organized the farmers to work together and find solutions to issues affecting them. The skills acquired by the farmers in the farm field schools would be useful in expanding knowledge about climate change resilient farming practices, according to Kayima.
“We anticipate the farmers have trained to play a significant role in disseminating good farming practices and sharing their knowledge with more community members. By doing so, they aim to close the knowledge gaps about good farming practices in the Kalungu community and the neighbouring sub-regions,” he noted.
Kayima further urged the farmer groups who have acquired skills through the field farm schools to share their knowledge with other farmers in their communities. By doing so, they can increase the number of people practising good farming practices from the current level of 10%, which is staggeringly low for the country, to higher levels of good performance.
The project has been established in different parts of the country and has significantly contributed to the fight against the impact of climate change in the country.
Eng. Kato Ronald Kayizi, who represented the State Minister for Water and Environment Aisha Ssekindi, expressed his gratitude towards FAO for their continued support to Uganda, particularly under the Global Climate Change Alliance Plus (GCCA+) project.
According to Kato, they are expecting another phase to be established soon as they conclude the first phase of the program.
The projects established in the ending phase have been so beneficial in the communities where they have been established, and they have greatly improved the challenge of knowledge gaps in climate change mitigation and adaptation in the country.
“I pray that the program be scaled up to benefit more farmers in the district and the region;” he emphasises.
Skilled Farmers
The farmers have expressed special gratitude towards FAO, KADIFA and the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), acknowledging that the program has enabled them to add value to their agricultural products and improve their livelihoods.
They appreciated the knowledge and skills they have gained, which has enabled them to process, package, and market their products more effectively, leading to increased earnings.
Annet Nabuguzi, a farmer from Kisalamatu Village in Bukulura Sub County, Kalungu district, has learned about mushroom growing. She plans to use this skill to improve her family’s financial situation by producing enough mushrooms for home consumption and selling the surplus for extra income.
Gertrude Namutebi, a district councillor representing Mabuye parish, has acquired knowledge and skills in mushroom growing. She intends to share this knowledge with other women’s groups in her area so that they too can learn how to grow mushrooms for food and extra income.
George Mwanje, a vegetable farmer in Bwesa village is another beneficiary of the farm field skills project who believes that the project should be extended to other parts of the district. He is convinced the program will enable other farmers to learn climate change-resilient measures, especially since several parts of the district are usually hit hard by climate change.
“Growing vegetables used to be difficult due to water scarcity,” says Mwanje, noting that with support from FAO and the skills obtained from training, he can now irrigate their crops using solar-powered irrigation systems installed in their area.
“This has enabled them to grow crops throughout the year and access water supply”.
According to Bridget Nakityo, a resident of Lwabenge in Lwabenge Sub County, she has learned how to add value to the soya beans. Although she has learnt how to make soya flour, she has encountered the challenge of securing clearance from UNBS.
“This has hindered me and other soya bean farmers from accessing markets outside Kalungu, such as supermarkets and shops, which could help them make more sales,” she recounts.
The farmers emphasized that the skills acquired through the program have not only improved their economic status but also helped them to mitigate the effects of climate change through the adoption of more resilient agricultural practices.
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