Agriculture In Africa Negatively Impacted By The Accelerated Global Warming

FROMANIN-DEPTH PERSPECTIVE,96%OF EGYPTISDESERTAND97% OFTHEPOPULATIONIS CONCENTRATEDONLYON4% OFTHEIRRIGATEDLAND.

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Dry Soil

The issues of climate change and itsimpact on food security are increasingly recognized in different parts of the world, including Africa.Africa is epitomized as the most vulnerable continent to climate change triggered by global warming.

Concern over the negative impact of climate change has strengthened fearsthat environmental degradation and demographic pressureswill displace millions of people in Africa and create serioussocial upheaval.

According to the IPCC (2007), agricultural productivity will decline from 21%to 9%by 2080 due to climate change in sub-Saharan Africa.The report indicatesthat rising temperatures in precipitation are likely to reduce the production of stable food by up to 50%and about two-thirdsof Africa?sarable land is expected to be lost by 2025 because of the lack of rainfall and drought.

Agriculture is critical to Africa?s growth and development,but climate change could destabilize local markets,curb growth,and heighten risks for agricultural investors.Thisis provable since climate change will disrupt and interfere with the natural ecosystem's stability and adaptation such that grassland and desert ecosystems will expand in area,while the rich forest

AGRICULTUREIN AFRICA NEGATIVELY IM PACTED BY THEACCELERATED GLOBAL W ARM ING

Agricul ture is crtical to AfricaN growth

ecosystems will reduce in area. Other major effects of climate change in the continent may include:reduced agricultural land use due to submergence of coastal regions and increased aridity in the tropical high agricultural potential regions, increased incidences of farm pests and diseases,over cultivation,food insecurity and poverty especially in Tropical regions.Africa will face serious challenges in her endeavor to adapt to new mechanismsof food production for sustainable development. From an in-depth perspective, 96%of Egypt isdesert and 97%of the population is concentrated only on 4%of the irrigated land. If the Nile water used for irrigation driesup,then there will be no food and the people of Egypt will migrate to other habitable regions in the temperate lands.There will be serious food insecurity problems resulting from disruption of natural ecosystemswith grassland and deserts expanding in area and the coastal region being submerged.M ost perennial rivers,such as the Nile, flowing through the deserts will probably dry up,inhibiting irrigation.Famine and starvation cases will increase. border) also have been severely impacted by recurrent droughts. Agriculture,which provides a livelihood for about three-quarters of Africa?s population, is mainly rain-fed. Severe and prolonged droughts,flooding, and loss of arable land due to desertification and soil erosion are reducing agricultural yieldsand causing crop failure and loss of livestock,which endanger rural and pastoralist populations.

W ith all these factors in play, food prices have skyrocketed,causing severe hardship for poor and vulnerable people throughout the world,and in particular in Africa. Between 2005 and 2008 world pricesof rice,wheat and maize doubled,pushing more than 100 million people into poverty,including nearly 30 million people in Africa

Recognizing the increasing threat of climate change,many countries came together in 2015 to adopt the historic ParisAgreement,committing themselves to limiting climate change to well below 2°C.Some 184 countries have formally joined the agreement, including almost every African nation, with only Angola,Eritrea and South Sudan yet to join.The agreement entered into force in November 2016.

As part of the Paris Agreement, countriesmade national commitments to take stepsto reduce emissions and build resilience.The treaty also called for increased financial support from developed countriesto assist the climate action efforts of developing countries.

For Africa to mitigate these risks, there should be an integrated policy approach to protect the arable land against global warming.

The world?s governmentsnot only have a responsibility to work constructively for a global agreement to manage climate change,but should also provide an enabling policy framework that facilitates and supportslocal institutions and other efforts.They should also invest in technologies to ensure that devolved administrative responsibilities are matched by resources and technical capacity.