Why smallholder farmers are the key to combating global warming

This summer in the northern hemisphere has been characterised by unusually high temperatures and wildfires in many countries.

On August 7 the Mendocino Complex became the biggest fire in the history of California, devouring 300,000 acres (117,700 ha) and surpassing the record set by the Thomas fire only last December.

Over the past 25 years, the world’s forest area has declined from 4.1 billion hectares to just under 4 billion hectares, a decrease of over 3 percent.

Although the global rate of deforestation has slowed significantly, in 2017 a total of 29.4 million hectares was lost. That’s equivalent to an area the size of a football pitch every second.

For IFAD, deforestation is a critical issue. The world faces a rising population, rapid urbanization, climate change, declining soil fertility and increasing demand for food and fuel. All of this puts pressure on land.

Wildfires aside, trees are felled for many reasons. Sometimes they provide fuel, firewood, and building supplies. Often they are cleared to allow commercial farming. This has accounted for almost 70 percent of deforestation in Latin America, according to a report by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization.

There are better ways to ensure food for all

We need to ensure food for our growing populations. But why not feed them with the food we waste? In many developing countries, overall post-harvest losses of cereals and pulses of 10 to 15 percent are commonplace. In some regions of Africa and Latin America, up to 50 percent of food harvested is lost.

Reducing post-harvest losses is one of several interventions to achieve the agricultural transformation that we need. But this requires investment. International Financial Institutions (IFIs) such as IFAD can and should play a vital role in land-use planning and any decisions about the need for deforestation.

The way ahead

Governments are now recognizing that agricultural transformation is a necessity for a food-secure future. The Koronivia decision at the United Nations Framework to Combat Climate Change (UNFCCC) in October 2017 and the Paris Agreement show that there is a political will to tackle these issues. The agricultural transformation will help us towards each of the Sustainable Development Goals. It will provide more food and reduce waste. It will ensure alternative energy supplies. Nutrition and education of young people will improve as parental income rises. Water will be used more efficiently, and women will have better working conditions and rights. Agricultural GHG emissions will fall.

And no less urgent, given the alarming rise in temperatures and wildfires in the northern hemisphere this summer, forests will be more able to sustain their historic role as sinks for atmospheric carbon dioxide.

But only the world’s smallholder farmers can drive this transformation. We at IFAD are here to help them make it happen.

Original source: IFAD
Published on 17 August 2018