By Happy Mulolani
The Ministry of Green Economy and Environment (MGEE) projects significant rain in the Northern, Muchinga, Luapula, and North-Western provinces, while the rest of the country will receive 20 millimetres to no rain, which is an improvement over the previous amount.
Speaking during a Dissemination and Engagement Meeting for the 2024/2025 Weather Forecast in Lusaka, Zambia Meteorological Department Director Edison Nkonde explained that it was very difficult to predict when rains will end but there will be enough moisture to support crop growth.
Mr Nkonde also revealed that for the first time, there is a weather station in every district, stressing the need to have a station at every agricultural camp if any meaningful impact is to be achieved.
“A lot of effort has been put in place but there is also high vulnerability. For us to understand how it’s affecting us, we need reliable data provided through these stations,” Mr Nkonde said.
He disclosed that the Department of Meteorology has installed 200 modern weather stations in districts, 500 rainfall stations in agriculture camps, and 200 soil moisture instruments in agriculture camps.
These facilities will help to collect precise data and improve quality of focus of data. Of significance, meteorological data is central for planning and building a more localised and accurate information.
They are still data limitations which makes it rather difficult to predict accurate weather patterns, which calls for strengthening partnerships to provide timely weather information.
Mr Nkonde pointed out, “What is changing mostly from our weather is the climate. On average nothing much is changing, what is impacting most is the soil mixture.”
“We need to do collaborative undertaking to come up with agroecological regions as the weather patterns change with the climatic shocks,” Mr Nkonde stated.
Indaba Agricultural Policy Research Institute Executive Director Chance Kabage expressed concern that the period 18 – 22 December 2024, will not register any rains, which is cause to worry because the rains might be insufficient seed for re-planting.
“By January, it’s unlikely to have greens given the delayed rainfall,” Mr Kabage stated.
He said there is need to raise the level of investment to have lots of data and also have strategies in place aimed at ensuring farmers make informed decisions.
Climate variability has reached a point where it is difficult to predict rainfall pattern. Therefore, to effectively disseminate weather information requires the Department of Meteorology to be equipped.
Agriculture Permanent Secretary for Technical Services John Mulongoti reaffirmed that the ministry is supporting farmers on Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) in terms of insurance.
“The ministry is seriously looking at reviewing agricultural insurance and also the farmers we are supporting,” Mr Mulongoti said.
He also explained that the national crop diversification strategy was recently launched in response to the narrative of supporting a variety of crops in view of the ever-changing weather patterns.
Mr Mulongoti reiterated that the ministry has heightened its efforts in water harvesting and is in the process of commissioning four dams in the Southern province.
Mr Mulongoti also stated that the ministry had shown commitment by investing in infrastructure for farmers utilisation.
He cited communities’ lack of maintenance of infrastructure as one of the teething problems, hence the need for them to take ownership.
“Infrastructure has to be maintained to avoid losing out on government’s investment in infrastructure,” Mr Mulongoti said.
Sustainability Consultant Novas Somanje indicated that the best approach following the climate shocks at present, is for farmers to diversify into other crops such as cassava, beans, sweet potatoes, among others.
“There is need to drive the diversification agenda in terms of crops, varieties, and livelihoods. Promoting other value chains which include; livestock, aquaculture, and agriculture enterprises, is key to boost food security,” Dr Somanje said.
Dr Somanje proposed the need for deliberate efforts to enhance irrigation, especially for those who already have irrigation facilities.
While, Zambia Seed Traders Association (ZASTA) Executive Secretary Godfrey Mwila takes cognizant of the issue of seed and its accessibility, which has been negatively impacted due to the occurring drought during the previous farming season.
“The issue of seed security is very key and the private sector has five percent of seed reserve which is not adequate to cater the farmers,” Mr Mwila said.
He also noted that it was necessary for the private sector to partner with government as a mechanism for building seed security reserves to sustain the country.
Mr Mwila observed the need for demand for some of the products to stimulate demand against production.
“There must be efforts for upscaling and multiplying more varieties on the market to promote seed industry. For this to work, requires a deliberate strategy and the private sector can produce appropriate seed in hard hit areas in the country,” he said.
Mr Mwila revealed ZASTA is currently working on a proposal to share with the government and how best to address seed security amid the drought.
Agricultural Institute of Zambia (AIZ) General Secretary Mathews Ngosa emphasized the need for increased information sharing by looking at the number of people that have already applied fertiliser for this season.
“We need to interrogate whether the season will end in March 2025, given the likelihood of the high cost of re-planting and availability of maize is not assured,” Mr Ngosa lamented.
Clearly, we need to elevate how we think in terms of tackling food security and productivity which is dependent on the weather pattern, and support the Department of Meteorology to be effective, and also invest in upscaling the system to make it more functional.