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African governments and stakeholders have been urged to step up the mitigation and adaptation mission in response to the climate crisis on the continent.
The Deputy Director of Climate Services at the Kenya Meteorological Department, Dr Richard Muita, says mitigation and adaptation are the best bet for managing the impact of droughts.
Dr Muita also advocates for water storage systems such as reservoirs that allow farmers to collect water to maximize production when the rains do not fall.
“If they are pastoralists, there might be problems with storing even pastures when there is a lot of it, and they can use them during those dry periods,” he said.
A new international climate assessment report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on August 9 indicates that the water cycle is intensifying and will continue to intensify as the planet is heating up.
The latest report predicted an increase in average temperatures and extreme heat on the African continent.
According to the report, the continent is likely to experience drier conditions, with the exception of the Sahara and East Africa.
The Sahara covers much of Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western Sahara, Sudan and Tunisia. It covers 9 million square kilometers (3,500,000 square miles), or 31% of Africa.
The rate of temperature increase across the continent will exceed the global average. As a result, the predicted drought and heat conditions will have negative impacts on rain-fed agriculture.
Dr Muita believes the situation can be saved if pragmatic measures are put in place.
“There are also other impacts of drought too. “
He cites bushfire epidemics and the displacement of species as impacts of drought, among others.
“Bee colonies, for example, which play an essential role in pollination. So if there are droughts, they are likely to move elsewhere.
Planting trees, according to Dr Muita, could also be one of the long-term measures to mitigate the impact of climate change.
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