Govt tackles agricultural effects of climate change

Government has encouraged its partners to assist in educating farmers and young people on the effects of climate change and proffer solutions to the challenges it brings to the farming sector. Climate change has been one of the challenges affecting the agriculture sector that the Government wants to tackle to ensure good harvests in the country.

Speaking at a climate change workshop at the Zimbabwe Institute of Public Administration and Management (ZIPAM) in Darwendale last week, climate mitigation expert in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement, Mr Lawrence Mashungu, said the issue of climate change affected the livelihoods of both humans and livestock and it was essential that everyone was aware of it.

“The issue of climate change is important to everyone as it affects our lives whether we are young or old,” he said.
“It can also affect our livestock. There is, therefore, need to educate our people on how they can deal with the effects of climate change and how they can reduce them as well. We cannot stop climate change unless we stop all emissions, but we can try and reduce the problem, which will also help our harvests.

“The main stay of our economy in Zimbabwe is agriculture as it contributes 15 percent to the GDP so if we are to talk of the economy, we are talking about agriculture, and since 67 percent of our people are below 35 years it is important for the youth to know the effects of climate change to the agriculture.”

Mr Mashungu said schools needed to educate young people on these effects as they were the future of the country.
“The issue of climate change is something that affects the livelihoods, so if you talk about the livelihoods then you talk of the future and if you talk of the future then you are talking of the young people,” he said.

“In this programme we are training our experts for them to be able to understand the calculation of emissions of the greenhouse gases emanating from forestry so with that view we have ensured that we invite young people and students.”
The ministry has invited two female representatives from Rome, Italy who are expected to educate the Ministry of Lands and the young people about the effects of climate change and how they can combat them.