African Seer carries an article on a new report by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and partner organizations, which demonstrates how shifting weather patterns will impact on food security in Kenya.

If dry areas receive additional rainfall as a result of shifting weather patterns, they could actually become more suited to growing the nation’s staple food crop of maize; with productivity in some areas boosted by more than 25 per cent.

However, climate change will also make other regions of the country less productive, such as the Rift Valley and Coast provinces.

The key is to provide options for farmers so that they can cope with a changing climate, says Timothy Thomas, a research fellow at IFPRI and co-author of the analysis.

‘Climate-smart villages’ are one way that farmers are learning about adapting to unpredictable weather patterns. These villages have been established across East Africa to demonstrate how different technologies and farming methods can be used to cope with changes in climate.

New varieties of crops such as sorghum, pigeon peas, cowpeas, green grams and sweet potatoes are being introduced as part of the initiative by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) together with the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) and the Ministry of Agriculture. Agroforestry is also being promoted to help improve the resilience of agriculture to climate change.

Read the full story: Kenya: Climate Change Could Bring More Rain