Increasing Resilience and Adaptability to Climate Change of Vulnerable Groups in Agriculture

Book excerpt: Climate change remains a global challenge due to the livelihood threat it poses particularly to the marginalized or vulnerable groups in society. Though developing countries contribute the least to the cause of climate change, they remain the most vulnerable to its effects. This vulnerability is due to the over-reliance of the population on rain-fed agriculture as the main livelihood source. These, mainly smallholder farmers, lack institutional, technological, infrastructural, and economic capabilities to adapt to climate change. In addition to this, there are wide disparities in the allocation of key sustainable livelihood assets (e.g., land, livestock, farm equipment, etc.) among men, women, and youth. For instance, women often have limited access to land, financial services, social capital, technology, labour, education, and other opportunities mainly due to traditional/cultural sex divisions within the domestic realm. Moreover, the majority of the resource-poor youth are employed in the agricultural sector, rendering them more vulnerable to climate uncertainties. The impact of climate change on these groups (men, women, youth, and smallholders) is expected to be different. Studies that fail to acknowledge these differences and focus only on geographical location could be misleading. Recent climate change scenarios indicate substantial reductions in the yield of staple foods linked to drought, high temperature, and rainfall variability with a projected overall decline in revenue from agriculture. These projected negative impacts would directly influence food security and render millions of households undernourished. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, between 720 and 828 million people across the globe are already experiencing chronic hunger. Additionally, about 161 million children below five years of age are stunted.