Climate Change Impacts on Small Landholding Farmers of Nepal

by Kushal Naharki/Nepal
Article edited by Musa Muhammad Tanko/Nigeria

Graphics by Chee Siang Teoh/ATO-ClimatEducate Project

Climate variability and extremes have the strongest direct impact on food security, given the sensitivity of agriculture to climate and the primary role of the sector as a source of food and livelihoods for the rural poor. The majority of people most vulnerable to climate shocks and natural hazards are the world’s 2.5 billion small-scale farmers, herders, fishers and forest-dependent communities, who derive their food and income from renewable natural resources. The average land holding in Nepalese family is 0.8 hectares per family and are characterized by their subsistence level of production. Smallholder farmers constitute more than half of national population and half of the country’s total population of hungry and poor. These figures suggest the importance of smallholder farmers in today’s world which is staring at food crisis.

Smallholder and subsistence farmers will suffer impacts of climate change that will be locally specific and hard to predict. The variety of crop and livestock species produced by any one household and their interactions, and the importance of non-market relations in production and marketing, will increase the complexity both of the impacts and of subsequent adaptations, relative to commercial farms with more restricted ranges of crops. Small farm sizes, low technology, low capitalization, and diverse non-climate  stressors will tend to increase vulnerability, but the resilience factors , family labor, existing patterns of diversification away from agriculture, and possession of a store of indigenous knowledge cannot not be underestimated. Social-scientific study of the future impacts of climate change on poor rural people in developing countries tend to be concerned with the increased frequency of extreme events with generalized impacts.

Agriculture is the mainstay of Nepal's economy and is highly vulnerable to climate change due to climate variability, climate-induced hazards and risks of the natural disasters which are complex, diverse and risk-prone. Large proportion of marginal farmers with small landholding, limited irrigation, low income level, limited institutional capacity, and greater dependency of agriculture on climate-sensitive natural resources has accelerated vulnerability. Nepal's agriculture is largely rainfed and their contribution to the GDP and food security is dependent on the characteristics of the monsoon rain. Existing system of food production is highly climate sensitive because of its low level of capital and technology. The decreasing trend of cultivated land, poses  as a serious threat to Nepal’s food security since agriculture is the main source of livelihood for majority of the population contributing about 33 percent to national economy and employs 66 percent of the total population.
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Scaled-up actions across sectors are urgently needed to strengthen the resilience of livelihoods and food systems to climate variability and extremes. A framework should be form to recognize the complexity and specificity of small landholding farmer, incorporate climate stressors on rural livelihoods and their contribution to vulnerability and study three different categories of climate change impact upon smallholder livelihoods. Addressing climate variability and extremes and their impact on food security and nutrition requires a focus on resilience. Context-specific interventions aimed at anticipating, limiting, and adapting to the effects of climate variability and extremes and building the resilience of livelihoods, food systems and nutrition to climatic shocks and stresses.

References

1. FAO. (2018). Food Security & Nutrition around the World. Rome.
   
2. Thakur, S. and Karki, G. (2018). CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ON AGRICULTURE AND LIVESTOCK IN NEPAL. The Journal of Agriculture and Environment, 9(7), 108-117

THE AUTHOR

Kushal Naharki is an undergraduate Agriculture student at the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Sciences (IAAS), Tribhuvan University in Nepal. He is currently a Project Member of the ATO-ClimatEducate Project in South Asia; Regional Ambassador of UNEP-Tunza for Nepal and Co-founder of Youth Innovation Network. He is working for climate activism, environmental awareness and agriculture.