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ILRI launches fodder project in Indonesia
Animal feeding Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - Far Eastern Agriculure
NBDC key message: Adapt new models and tools for planning,
implementation and capacity building
NBDC: video - Oct/2015
Climate change, food security and the refugee crisis:
connecting the dots to avoid future tragedy
CRP 7 News - Oct/2015
It is widely held that climate change will have negative impacts on agricultural communities. Now,
research is supporting the theory that climate impacts will catalyze tragedy among vulnerable
populations. In a new paper, 'Climate change in the Fertile Crescent and implications of the recent
Syrian drought', Kelley et al. argue that “human influences on the climate system are implicated in the current
Syrian conflict,” and man-made climate change was a likely contributor to the severe drought that gripped
Syria from 2007 to 2010. The drought led to crop failure and worsened rural poverty, which helped drive
mass migration from rural to urban areas. The authors describe how this process put pressures on Syria’s
big cities, which were already experiencing rapid population growth rates and an influx of over one 1.5
million Iraqi refugees. The Syrian government’s failure to address the overcrowding, unemployment, lack
of infrastructure and other troublesome elements fueled the fire of unrest among the population.
Climate impacts will catalyze tragedy among vulnerable populations
These unfortunate developments are by no means unique, as history books are rife with narratives
linking environmental issues and conflict. Similar scenarios have occurred in settings as diverse as the
United States Great Plains in the 1930s, to the Sahel region from the 1960s to 1980s. Even the
collapse of the Mayan society has been linked to recurrent drought, mass migration and
subsequent conflict over resources.
Teasing out cause and effect
The research base surrounding the links between environmental change, migration and conflict is
fraught with controversy. Tracing out the complex circumstances that influence people’s decision to
upend their lives and embark on uncertain and potentially dangerous journeys can be extremely difficult,
and the lack of systematic data on the phenomenon complicates matters. Motivations can be tied to
diverse and interplaying factors, including economic opportunities, land degradation, political
persecution and overpopulation.
Climatic extremes and man-made climate change influence the underlying socioeconomic conditions that
motivate people to move. This can be through extreme weather events, which abruptly and forcefully
displace people from their land, or through more gradual processes such as sea-level rise and long-term
drought. According to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, since 2008, an average 26 million
people per year were internally displaced due to natural disasters, at the global level. Over one
billion people were hit by drought between 1994 and 2013, despite the fact that droughts account for
only 5% of extreme events over the period.
This year, El Niño could make the situation worse, as drier-that-normal conditions have been
forecast for much of southern Africa, northern South America, and Southeast Asia. Though El Niño
events are not the only source of climate variability, they do provide enhanced ability to predict
where weather and climate hazards are likely to strike. El Niño events facilitate and test our ability
to respond to climate extremes that may become more frequent in the coming decades.
The impacts of drought are far-reaching, affecting food prices and markets in surrounding regions and
even the global economy. In some areas, drought can affect regional water availability and hinder energy
production from hydropower plants. At the other end of the spectrum is the overabundance of water:
the 2006 Stern Review warns that 200 million coastal inhabitants will be displaced by 2050 due to rising
sea levels and attendant inundation from storm surge.
Climate forecast could spell further displacement
The Middle-East and North African (MENA) region is already one of the least water-secure areas in
the world. In the coming decades, climate change and associated temperature rise are forecasted to have
further significant negative impacts on food and water security (see Hötzl, 2008; Chenoweth et al.,
2011; Evans, 2009). More frequent extreme weather events and sporadic rainfall will threaten the
region’s already stressed water supply, and increased drought occurrence is expected to lower agricultural
yields. Sea-level rise may displace millions of people in the region’s low-lying coastal areas as well.
Migration is a legitimate form of adaptation to climate change
Migration is a legitimate form of adaptation to climate change. When weather and climate anomalies
have a strong impact on the agricultural sector, rural wage levels are negatively affected. Rural to
urban migration provides opportunities for better wages, and this type of migration is already
prevalent in the MENA region. However, violent conflict is found to be statistically more likely to
occur in urban areas experiencing rapid population growth, or pronounced levels of social and income
inequality.
Preventing tragedy
The key question is, with the prognosis of worsening food and water security in the MENA region, what
can we do to prevent future tragedy? In the words of Cecilia Tacoli from the International Institute for
Environment and Development, “It is when extreme events affect people with high levels of vulnerability that they
become disasters" (Tacoli, 2011).
We need a new narrative. We must tackle vulnerability to the coming climatic extremes in a two -pronged
fashion: by minimizing negative impacts on rural economies, while enhancing the absorptive capacity of
cities. Providing opportunities for rural communities to remain productive on their land can curtail mass
migration, slowing rural to urban migration rates in order to avoid volatile and rapid urbanization.
Simultaneously, governments must work to address the social and income inequalities that aris e when
rural to urban migration occurs.
We need to invest in helping farmers produce more on their existing land, using sustainable approaches
that are best suited to local agro-ecological conditions. This can improve income, especially when
farmers can access climate information and seasonal forecasts that help them decide what to plant
and when. Better early warning system would allow farmers to prepare for impending extreme events.
Interventions such as the Ethiopian Government’s Productive Safety Net Programme can provide aid
to households in need while building community assets, allowing rural populations t o avoid migration
and instead make household investments that build resilience. In addition, climate-based index
insurance can serve as a financial safety net to small-holder farmers, by allowing them to act on
climate information and seasonal forecasts, which indicate a shift in the odds of the upcoming seasonal
climate.
We need to continue building the knowledge base on how the impacts of climate change will influence
people to abandon their land
With proper foresight, and better understanding of the connections between climate change, food
security and migration, world leaders can address one of the main contributors to this crisis, and create
better lives and futures for vulnerable people. However, tracing out the causal pathways linking these
already complex issues is no easy task. We need to continue building the knowledge base on how the
impacts of climate change will influence people to abandon their land. We do know that with early
warning, early action can be taken towards planning and preparedness that can reduce the negative
impacts on society. What systems of information and action are appropriate will likely be geographically
and socially specific. It is critical that we pinpoint effective and dynamic interventions, suited to the local
contexts of both rural areas and cities, which can help prevent future tragedies.
References
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Black R, Adger WN, Arnell NW, Dercon S, Geddes A, Thomas DSG. 2011. The effect of
environmental change on human migration. Global Environmental Change 215: 8.
Carriquiry MA and Osgood DE. 2012. Index Insurance, Probabilistic Climate Forecasts, and
Production. Journal of Risk and Insurance, 79:1.
Chenoweth J, Hadjinicolaou P, Bruggeman A, Lelieveld J, Levin Z, Lange MA, Xoplaki E, Hadjikakou
M. 2011. Impact of climate change on the water resources of the eastern Mediterranean and
Middle East region: modeled 21st century changes and implications. Water Resources Research
47: 1-18.
CRED. 2015. The human cost of natural disasters 2015: A global perspective. Brussels, Centre
for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters.
Diamond J. 2005. Collapse: How societies choose to fail or succeed. New York, New York:
Penguin Group.
Evans JP. 2009. 21st century climate change in the Middle East. Climatic Change 92: 417-432.
Goddard L, Dilley M. 2005. El Niño: catastrophe or opportunity. Journal of Climate 18:651–665.
Hötzl H. 2008. Water resources management in the Middle East under aspects of climatic changes. In:
Zereini F, Hötzl H, eds. Climatic Changes and Water Resources in the Middle East and North
Africa. Berlin: Springer. p 77-92.
IMDC. 2015. Global estimates 2015. People displaced by disasters. Geneva: Internal
Displacement Monitoring Centre.
Kelley CP, Mohtadi S, Cane MA, Seager R, Kushnir Y. 2015. Climate change in the Fertile
Crescent and implications of the recent Syrian drought. Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences 112 (11): 3241-3246.
Maddocks A, Young RS, Reig P. 2015. Ranking the world’s most water-stressed countries in
2040: World Resources Institute.
Marchiori L, Maystadt J-F, Schumacher I. 2012. The impact of weather anomalies on migration in
sub-Saharan Africa. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 63(3): 355-374.
Muggah R. 2012. Researching the urban dilemma: Urbanization, poverty and violence.
International Development Research Centre.
Reuveny R. 2007. Climate change-induced migration and violent conflict. Political Geography 26
(6): 656-673.
Stern N. 2006. Stern Review: the Economics of Climate Change. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Tacoli C. 2011. Migration and mobility in a changing climate: A policy perspective. Journal
Revista Interdisciplinar da Mobilidade Humana 19 (36): 113-124.
Wodon Q, Liverani A, Joseph G, Bougnoux N. 2014. Climate change and migration: Climate
Change and Migration : Evidence from the Middle East and North Africa. Washington DC:
World Bank.
The role of para-professionals in the delivery of Veterinary
Services in Africa
Africa Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - OIE
The role of para-professionals in the delivery of Veterinary
Services in Africa
Animal Health Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - OIE
The role of para-professionals in the delivery of Veterinary
Services in Africa
Livestock news - Oct/2015
2015/10 - OIE
Project helping women gain more from raising chickens
Africa Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - SciDev.Net
Project helping women gain more from raising chickens
ILRI in the media - Oct/2015
2015/10 - SciDev.Net
8 golden rules for sustainable development of dairy [in Asia]
Asia Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - FAO
8 golden rules for sustainable development of dairy [in Asia]
Dairying Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - FAO
8 golden rules for sustainable development of dairy [in Asia]
Livestock news - Oct/2015
2015/10 - FAO
How Women Can Maximize the Nutrition and Health Benefits
of Irrigation for All
CRP 4 program news - Oct/2015
In response to increasing interest in how health has bearings on the gender-agriculture-nutrition framework,
A4NH organized a seminar on Agriculture, Gender, and Health: Tracing the Links on October 20, 2015.
The seminar provided three case studies in how gender dynamics in rural livelihoods influence health, and in turn,
nutrition. Kelly Jones shared an overview of gender issues in health research and then presented on recent research that
traces how livelihood shocks increase HIV transmission through transactional sex, especially for women. Delia
Grace introduced a gender-sensitive participatory risk assessment framework for addressing food safety.
Elizabeth Bryan shared research on the links between small-scale irrigation adoption, gender, and
health and nutrition outcomes . In this blog, Elizabeth builds on the agriculture-nutrition framework to examine
the gendered pathways through which small-scale irrigation can affect nutrition and health outcomes.
Photo: Freweni Gebre Mariam. Source: Flickr (IFPRI Images)
Gaining access to water is one of the main challenges facing agricultural households in Africa south of
the Sahara. Water is essential for every aspect of the life and livelihoods of smallholder producers, from
drinking and bathing to watering crops and livestock. Yet most agricultural production relies on rainfall
that is variable and becoming increasingly uncertain under climate change, and too many households still
do not have access to safe drinking water and sanitation facilities.
In this context, the potential for small-scale irrigation to lead to dramatic improvements in the wellbeing of rural producers is immense. Small-scale irrigation can affect nutrition and health outcomes
through several pathways, all of which are strongly influenced by gender. Paying careful attention to
gendered differences in access to as well as needs and preferences for water technologies and their uses,
is essential to ensure that irrigation interventions provide the greatest benefits in terms of health and
nutrition while minimizing risks. This blog describes the ways in which gender interplays with the key
pathways through which irrigation can contribute to improved health and nutrition outcomes.
Photo: Yonas Bogale. Source: Flickr (IFPRI Images)
The production pathway. Irrigation can double or triple crop yields and expands the production
calendar into the lean season, enabling farmers to plant crops multiple times per year . It can also reduce
production risk, by providing supplemental water when rains fail, which might well occur more
frequently with climate change. However, the extent to which these production gains translate into
improved health and nutrition outcomes depends greatly on who in the household adopts and how the
technology is used. There is some evidence to suggest that women are more likely to use irrigation to
grow crops for household consumption including more nutritious crops such as leafy green vegetable s,
while men tend to prefer to use irrigation to grow cash crops.
The income pathway. Small-scale irrigation may indirectly benefit nutrition and health outcomes to the
extent that income gained through the sale of irrigated crops is used to increase food expenditures or
health spending, such as on malaria treatment or prevention. Irrigation may also create opportunities for
employment due to increased agricultural productivity and expansion of the production calendar into
slack periods. This would increase the income of agricultural workers even if they do not cultivate their
own lands, thereby providing an income pathway for these households to improve nutrition and health
outcomes. Gender is a key factor influencing the extent to which increased income leads to improved
nutrition and health outcomes. Men and women tend to spend income in different ways with women
more likely to spend the income they control on food, health and education. Therefore, women’s control
over income from the sale of irrigated crops and from agricultural employment is essential for realizing
health and nutrition gains from irrigation.
Photo: Milo Mitchell. Source: Flickr (IFPRI Images)
The water supply and sanitation pathway. Irrigation water can often be used for other domestic or
productive purposes such as drinking, washing, livestock watering and aquaculture. These multiple uses
of irrigation water may be unplanned or by design. Again, the extent to which gender preferences are
considered may lead to different outcomes. Given women’s and children’s responsibility to collect water
for domestic purposes, the more women are involved in the design of irrigation systems, the more likely
multiple uses of irrigation water will be integrated. This can lead to more dramatic health benefits, such
as a reduction in diarrhea incidence due to the presence of more water for hygienic purposes.
The health risks pathway. Irrigation may also increase health risks, through an increase in the
incidence of vector-borne diseases, such as malaria and dengue, and through an increase in pollution
from agricultural production, given increased use of agricultural chemicals which are often used to
complement irrigation. Gender roles in the household will influence how this pathway plays out. For
example, time spent caring for sick family members, a typical role of women in the household, is likely to
increase with the growing incidence of vector-borne diseases. Women may also play a vital role in
mitigating any negative impacts of irrigation by increasing preventive measures, such as purchasing bed
nets, or engaging in agro-environmental prevention measures related to livestock and water management.
The women’s empowerment pathway. Women not only influence the pathways through which
irrigation affects nutrition and health outcomes, but are also directly affected by the introduction of
irrigation. If not carefully planned and targeted, irrigation may lead to negative outcomes for women by
increasing their time burden or increasing the gender gap in decision-making authority and asset
ownership. At the same time, irrigation can contribute to women’s empowerment to the extent that
women are able to access irrigation technologies that meet their needs, and have control over irrigated
crops and the income from crop sales. There are several examples of irrigation projects targeted toward
women, such as the Hellen Keller International homestead garden program, which show direct
benefits for women participants, such as an increase in assets and income controlled by women.
To investigate the ways in which gender interacts with irrigation and nutrition and health outcomes,
IFPRI has developed a modified Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI), which
includes more details on irrigation. In particular, it includes details on gender differences in decision making regarding irrigated food crop and cash crop farming, autonomy in decision-making regarding
which crops to produce, access to productive capital including irrigation equipment, access to
information regarding irrigation, and time spent irrigating. The modified WEAI also adds several
response options to questions on credit and savings, to determine the extent to which men and women
use these financial resources for irrigation.
This modified WEAI is being rolled out as part of two projects examining the impact of small -scale
irrigation in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania: The Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Small-Scale
Irrigation and the Impact of Irrigation on Agricultural Productivity, Nutrition, Health and
Women’s Empowerment in Ghana. These projects will analyze data from irrigating and non-irrigating
households these countries to determine the extent to which women’s empowerment or
disempowerment contributes to nutrition and health outcomes as well as the extent to which irrigation
contributes to women’s empowerment. Early results show slight differences in WEAI scores for
irrigators and non-irrigators in Ethiopia and Tanzania, with women irrigators in Tanzania more
empowered than non-irrigators and non-irrigators in Ethiopia more empowered than irrigators. IFPRI
will be examining the reasons for these differences over the next several months. Stay tuned for more
results on this topic!
For Further Reading:
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Domenech, L. 2015. Improving Irrigation Access to Combat Food Insecurity and
Undernutrition: A Review. Global Food Security, 6: 24-33.
o Domenech, L. “How can irrigation water improve women’s empowerment and nutrition? An
untapped potential for Africa south of the Sahara.” A4NH Gender-Nutrition Idea Exchange
Blog
A4NH/IFPRI Gender Seminar: Gender, Agriculture, and Health: Tracing the Links
o Bryan, E. Linkages between irrigation, nutrition, health, and gender.
o Grace, D. Gender-sensitive participatory risk assessment for food safety.
o Jones, K. The intersection of health and agriculture: Through a gender lens.
Ringler, C. Tapping irrigation’s potential for women’s empowerment: Findings from Ethiopia
and Tanzania. Presented at USAID on October 13, 2015.
Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Small-Scale Irrigation
Impact of Irrigation on Agricultural Productivity, Nutrition, Health and Women’s
Empowerment in Ghana
This post is part of a blog, the Gender-Nutrition Idea Exchange , maintained by the CRP on Agriculture for
Nutrition and Health. To add your comments below, please register with Disqus or log -in using your Facebook, Twitter,
or Google accounts. You must be signed-in or registered in order to leave a comment.
ILRI Kenya Friday Morning Coffee (FMC): 23 October 2015
Latest ILRI announcements - Oct/2015
ILRI Nairobi’s Friday morning coffee (FMC) announcements and updates from 23 October 2015.
Listen in!
Uganda eyes local, export beef market with US.$11 million
investment
East Africa Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - allAfrica.com
Uganda eyes local, export beef market with US.$11 million
investment
Uganda Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - allAfrica.com
Uganda eyes local, export beef market with US.$11 million
investment
Livestock news - Oct/2015
2015/10 - allAfrica.com
Dairy business hubs in Tanzania – farmer preferences and
needs
ILRI Blogposts - Oct/2015
2015/10 - CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish
Dairy business hubs in Tanzania – farmer preferences and
needs
Innovation Systems Bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish
Dairy business hubs in Tanzania – farmer preferences and
needs
Southern Africa: bookmarks - Oct/2015
2015/10 - CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish
Dairy business hubs in Tanzania – farmer preferences and
needs
ILRI blogposts front page - Oct/2015
2015/10 - CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish
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