Climate Change

The World Bank, in collaboration with USAID, the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), and CIAT, has continued its series on climate-smart agriculture (CSA) with a new country profile for Senegal . The profile takes an in-depth look at Senegal’s current agricultural and climate conditions and highlights several efforts that the Senegalese government is making to integrate climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies into its broader agricultural and economic development policy.

According to a 2014 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), by 2050, the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events could increase hunger and child malnutrition by as much as 20 percent.  This would mean an enormous setback in Africa’s progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and could significantly slow the region’s economic development and growth.

Discussions about the effects of climate change and climate change adaptation often center on changes in crop yields and subsequent changes in food security and incomes . In addition to these immediate impacts, however, climate change can have important secondary effects on a range of other development indicators.

According to the World Bank, Malawi ranks among the countries in the world that are most vulnerable to the negative impacts of climate change, including exposure to drought, dry spells, and flooding. These extreme weather events can reduce the country’s agricultural production, threatening the livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers and increasing food insecurity and poverty, especially in rural areas.

This week, the FAO held its 29 th Regional Conference for Africa (ARC) in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. The conference, a biennial event, provides a platform for policymakers and stakeholders to discuss agricultural development in the region, with the aim of promoting regional cooperation and coherent policies.