Innovative ways to climate change adaptation

in the agricultural sectors

Dr Zhijun Chen1

1. Background

Despite rapid social and economic development in the past decades, Asia and the Pacific region has
both the greatest concentration of food insecure households and incidence of poverty globally. Figures
show that some 63 percent of the world’s undernourished population is located in the region as well as
two thirds of the world’s poor. Faced with increased competition for natural resource use and
accelerated degradation of the environment and ecosystems – in a context where the population in the
region is expected to grow by another 1.5 billion people by 2050 – food security and sustainable
development are and will continue to be major concerns. Climate change has compounded these
challenges.

The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released in
April 2007 (IPCC, 2007) concluded that most of the observed increase in global average temperatures
since the mid-twentieth century is very likely a result of the observed increase in anthropogenic
greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations, mainly in the forms of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4)
and nitrous oxide (N2O).

The impacts of climate change in this region have been observed in the past decades and further
projected under different scenarios, including: increase of temperature and rainfall variability across
the region; retreat of glaciers and permafrost in snow mountains; decrease of freshwater availability in
most of the region; increase of extreme weather events in many countries; and sea water intrusion and
flood risks in small island countries and coastal areas. Although some specific areas may gain benefits,

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Water Resources Development and Conservation Officer, FAO Regional Officer for Asia and the Pacific.
most of the region will be negatively impacted, especially the small island countries of the Pacific
subregion.

The agricultural sectors, including crop and livestock production, forestry and fisheries, are vulnerable
to climate change. Climate change affects the basic elements of food production - soil, water and
biodiversity and as such has impacts on all dimensions of food security. Under the IPCC’s A2
scenario, it is projected that an additional 49 million people in Asia will be at risk of hunger by 2020.
The A2 Asian hunger-risk projection for 2050 is 132 million, and for 2080 it is 266 million (IPCC,
2007). The region’s agricultural sectors will have to respond effectively to the impact of climate
change to ensure regional food security. Action is needed now. Inaction will significantly increase
future costs.

2. Issues to be addressed

Various initiatives in climate change adaptation in the agricultural sectors have been taken by the
international community, government departments, academic institutions, NGOs, rural communities
and farmers in this region. The lessons learnt and experiences generated so far suggest that a number
of issues need to be specifically addressed and these are identified below.

2.1 Complexity of regional context and climate change impacts

The region presents a diversified agro-ecosystem and socio-economic context. The impact of climate
change will vary across geographic areas as follows:

• the Himalayas will suffer from increased freshwater variations and flash floods because of glacier
melting;
• low-lying coastal areas and deltas will see more frequent and intensified floods, land losses and
saline water intrusion because of extreme weather events and sea level rise;
• arid zones will be highly exposed to intensified droughts and water scarcity because of reduced
rainfall and increased evapotranspiration; and
• small islands will face sea level rises and storm surges.

According to a recent Asian Development Bank (ADB) assessment (ADB, 2009), in the Asian
subregion, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Nepal are the most
vulnerable to climate change. Bhutan, China, Pakistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Uzbekistan, and Viet
Nam are significantly vulnerable. Smallholder farmers, forest dwellers, herders and fishers who live in
fragile areas with limited access to natural resources and adaptation capacity will be the most affected.
There is no “one size fits all” solution. Tailor-made options are needed for different areas based on
local contexts.

2.2 Multiple requirements of agricultural sectors

The agricultural sectors contribute to GHG emissions and offer high potential to mitigate them.
Agriculture contributes 13.5 percent of present-day global GHG emissions; land-use change and
forestry represent another 17.4 percent. About three-fourths of these emissions originate in developing
countries. The agricultural sectors’ mitigation potential arises from their possibility to reduce GHG

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emissions and the ability to provide carbon sinks. It is estimated that the technical mitigation potential
(TMP) of forests is equivalent to about 64 percent of the forestry sector’s emissions by 2050. The
TMP of agriculture is estimated at 83 to 91 percent of the agriculture sectors’ emissions by 2030.
Without a significant contribution from the agricultural sectors, it is not likely that the target of cutting
the global GHG emissions by 50 percent from 1990s levels will be met. Asia accounts for 37 percent
of global GHG emissions from agricultural production. South Asia and East Asia contribute 43
percent of global N2O emissions from soils and 47 percent of global methane emissions from enteric
fermentation. China and Southeast Asia contribute more than 90 percent of methane emissions that
come from the world’s rice production. Considering other challenges related to land and water scarcity,
environment degradation and demographic change, the agricultural sectors need to meet the multiple
requirements of climate change adaptation, mitigation, food security and sustainable development.

2.3 Data and information generation

Countries need a sound understanding of climate change impacts and their implications for their food
systems, ecosystems, societies and national economies. They need this so as to be in a position to take
pro-active and anticipatory adaptation actions to address the short-term climate variations and to
prepare for the long-term impacts resulting from changes in mean temperatures, rainfall, salinity and
sea levels. However, because of the uncertainties of CO2 fertilization effects, socio-economic
pathways, and countries’ adaptive capacity, reliable impact scenarios are often not available at
national and subnational levels. It is crucial to develop climate change scenarios and models further in
order to make them more area-specific. At the same time, developing countries will need to conduct
comprehensive climate change monitoring and forecasting and develop stronger capacity in climate
change analysis and research, in order to enable scientific planning and informed decision-making for
climate change adaptation and mitigation.

2.4 Science and technology development

Local knowledge and practices exist in many areas for coping with seasonal and annual climate
variability. Today, the need to increase production coupled with the speed and magnitude of the
expected changes in climate mean new challenges for farmers. Traditional coping mechanisms often
will not be sufficient for dealing with expected medium- to long-term impacts of climate change. To
adapt agricultural sectors to the expected impacts of climate change, further science and technology
development is needed to:
• breed new crop varieties and animal breeds;
• improve adaptive capacity of production and management systems;
• promote efficient use of agricultural inputs and wastes; and
• integrate them under the context of typical farming systems and agro-ecological zones.

To realize the mitigation potential of the agricultural sectors, further research on mitigation
technologies relevant to Asian and the Pacific farming systems is needed. Suitable monitoring,
reporting and verification (MRV) systems for both national and smallholder implementation need to
be developed for monitoring commitments and developing carbon financing mechanisms.

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2.5 National and local capacity building

In view of the limited national and local capacity in developing countries, continuous capacity
building is needed at different levels to:

• upscale indigenous climate-proofing practices;

• disseminate updated information and technologies; and
• strengthen local capacity on climate change monitoring and analysis, vulnerability assessment,
strategy and policy formulation, institutional innovation, integrated planning, proper
mainstreaming and implementation, as well as MRV of mitigation activities.

3. Innovative ways and good practices

3.1 Picking-up the “lower-hanging fruits”

A wide range of adaptation options is available in the agricultural sectors. Integrated planning,
embodying all concerned sectors, combining all suitable and necessary options and following an agro-
ecosystem approach will enable effective responses to specific local needs in different areas. Many
successful practices derived from sustainable agriculture, forestry, fishery and natural resource
management and rural development are readily available, locally appropriate and cost-effective. These
“lower-hanging fruits” can be picked first. Good examples include changing crop and livestock
varieties, changing cropping patterns, changing agriculture land and inputs use, improving agricultural
water management, and diversifying agricultural activities among crops, within agricultural sectors
and beyond.

Change of crop varieties As drought conditions emerged in traditional rice fields in some parts of
Bangladesh, rice varieties with shorter growing seasons and fruit and vegetable crops with relatively
low water requirements were introduced. As a result, farmers harvested high value cash crops to sell at
the market. To avoid the impact of floods, farmers in some other areas of Bangladesh plant early or
late varieties of transplanted aman (a wet season rice variety). The early production of rice encourages
the growing of other additional crops which increases farmers’ incomes.

Change of livestock variety In the Tibetan Plateau, increasing extreme cold weather conditions affect
the survival or productivity of livestock. In Western Sichuan Province of China, livestock breeders
select breeding yak (jiulong or valley-type and maiwa or plateau-type), which are tolerant to extreme
cold weather. This increases their resilience to cold weather conditions and stabilizes their food supply
and income generation.

Organic farming In Yasothorn Province of Thailand, prolonged drought and unpredictable flooding
were destroying rice crops. Local farmers adopted organic jasmine rice farming through assistance
from an NGO. The practice was successful. Soil fertility has been increased and families reported
higher rice yields and much higher profits as they do not use chemicals. Furthermore, organic rice
proved to be much more resistant to drought and water scarcity than chemically-grown rice crops.

Agriculture diversification To cope with consecutive droughts, farmers in the semi-arid Jhalawar
district in Rajasthan, India, have shifted from traditional crops, such as sorghum and pearl millet, to
soybean, which receives higher market prices and yields quick returns because of its shorter life cycle.

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To respond to the impacts of sea level rise and sea water intrusion, rice-shrimp farms have been
developed in Viet Nam in the Mekong Delta area. These farms are facilitated by flexible water control
structures allowing for both freshwater and brackish water control.

3.2 Capturing the synergies

Many good adaptation practices in the agricultural sectors can also contribute to climate change
mitigation through enhancing or preserving carbon sinks or reducing GHG emissions. These include
improving rice cultivation, improving pastures and grazing land management, improving agricultural
water management, and practicing no-tillage agriculture and agroforestry. These practices offer good
chances for capturing synergies among adaptation, mitigation, food security and sustainable
development in the agricultural sectors. They are normally cost-effective and suitable to smallholder
farming in developing countries. In view of limited financial resources, the lack of climate change
information and the uncertainty of climate change impacts, these practices must be given high priority
for scaling up.

Improved rice cultivation Rice is a significant contributor to CH4 emissions. Research shows that
combined options of high-yielding varieties, improved fertilizer use, shifting to rice-wheat production
systems, alternating dry-wet irrigation, and utilizing crop residues for renewable energy can reduce
GHG emissions. At the same time it builds resilience by conserving water, reducing land requirements,
and reducing fossil fuel use. India and China could each reduce CH4 emissions from rice fields by 26
percent at low cost (less than US$15 per ton of CO2 equivalent) by 2020.

Grazing land management Degraded or overgrazed land can be restored to produce more biomass by
selectively planting grasses, adding phosphatic fertilizers, and alternating grazing with rest periods for
the land. Increased biomass productivity enhances soil cover, increases moisture availability, and
increases the overall amounts of stable organic matter in the soil. These will benefit livestock
production and herders’ livelihoods while decelerating grazing land desertification. In Asia, large
technical potential exists, especially in India, which has one of the world’s largest grazing land areas.

Agriculture water management Water is the primary medium through which climate change
influences the earth’s ecosystems and therefore people’s livelihoods and well-being. Adaptation to
climate change is mainly about better water management. Asia and the Pacific region is currently the
region most heavily hit by water disasters. Climate change will worsen the situation. A wide range of
good agricultural water management practices are readily available for replication, including
modernization of irrigation schemes, water saving irrigation, community level water control, water
harvesting and onfarm water management. The main constraint now is lack of investments.

Non-tillage agriculture Tillage reduction is an effective mitigation and adaptation strategy, especially
in South Asia. In the past decade, farmers in the rice-wheat farming system in the Indo-Gangetic plain
of Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan have adopted minimum-tillage practices widely, which conserve
resources under climate change. Since being introduced in the late 1990s, zero tillage for wheat has
been adopted rapidly by more than 1 million farmers on an estimated million hectares. Farmers’ wheat
yields have reportedly improved and production costs have decreased by an average of US$65 per
hectare, with additional benefits for water conservation and herbicide reductions.

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Agroforestry While increasing farmers’ resilience to climate change, improving food security and
rural livelihoods, agroforestry systems increase carbon storage and may also reduce soil carbon losses
stemming from erosion. Options include combining crops with trees for timber, firewood, fodder and
other products, and establishing shelter belts and riparian zones/buffer strips with woody species.

Biogas This is produced through the anaerobic digestion of animal dung. Biogas projects have been
implemented at the household and village scale for the production of cooking fuel and electricity. It
originated in China, where 15 million households have access to biogas, with plans to expand to 27
million households, or 10 percent of rural households, by 2010. Similar programmes have had success
in India, Nepal, and Viet Nam. In India, more than 12 million biogas plants have been installed with a
high rate of continued functionality. Since 1992, more than 140 000 biogas plants have been installed
in Nepal. Biogas production improves indoor air quality and livelihoods, decreases the strain on scarce
resources, saves women’s labour time and provides organic fertilizer.

3.3 Managing the risks in an integrated approach

Climate change is creating increased uncertainty about future agricultural production elements, which
makes investments in agriculture and other weather-dependent livelihoods inherently more risky.
Integrated disaster risk management could be a good approach to adopt. This requires: improved
infrastructure systems to protect against assets losses; proper weather and climate monitoring systems
and models to provide quality information and advisory services for agricultural communities; reliable
and timely early warning systems; rapid emergency response capacity; and effective social safety
networks, including innovative risk financing instruments and insurance schemes to spread residual
risks.

FAO, in cooperation with the Chinese Government, implemented a TCP project on Strengthening
Disaster Preparedness of the Agricultural Sector in China during 2007—2009. The project introduced
integrated a disaster risk management approach into Juye County, an area with high vulnerability to
flood and drought disasters in Shandong province. The project has proved to be successful through:

• the improvement of water control infrastructure;

• strengthening of an early warning system for water disasters, agricultural production and marketing
from provincial to village level;
• enhancement of integrated disaster risk management plans for county level; and
• establishment and empowerment of farmers’ organizations for participatory disaster risk
management at community level.

3.4 Mainstreaming adaptation into development plans

Participatory planning under the framework of a National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA)
can be a good approach to develop strategies and frameworks for climate change adaptation in the
agricultural sectors. These can also be employed to outline the objectives and actions for technology
development and transfer, capacity building and financing. Based on the local context, they can be
used to maximize the synergies and minimize the trade-offs among climate change adaptation,
mitigation, food security and sustainable development. This needs to be mainstreamed into national
and local agriculture and socio-economic development plans with the strong engagement of all
stakeholders and special attention to gender issues.

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Participatory planning in Viet Nam As a response to recurrent climatic catastrophes, a community-
based adaptation project was implemented in eight villages of Thua Thien Hue province of Viet Nam
in 2002. Involved communities worked together with the government in scenario building, adaptation
planning and implementation. Through consultations with local social groups and organizations,
including those for farmers, fishers, women, youth, and other village political associations, “safer
village plans” were developed and implemented. These include livelihood improvements in agriculture
and aquaculture, disaster management protocols and other strategies.

FAO’s vehicles for mainstreaming FAO has been assisting subregional bodies and member countries
in this region in mainstreaming their climate change planning and considerations into national
agriculture, food security and development strategies and plans, mainly through the formulation of
national programmes for food security (NPFS) and Government-FAO national medium-term priority
frameworks (NMTPF).

3.5 Tailor-made capacity building

Capacity building needs to be tailored to different levels in different countries. Although training for
rural communities and farmers may focus on practical knowledge and tools, capacity building for
national institutes and government departments must be more holistic, covering all policy, institutional
and technical aspects based on their needs. Relevant training modules and extension materials need to
be carefully prepared, and a participatory approach should be incorporated into all training and
capacity building activities.

Farmer Field School (FFS) This training methodology is widely applied in various FAO field
programmes/projects on agricultural development, natural resource management and food security all
over the world. It was developed for training and capacity building at rural community and farmer
level. FFS fully involves all the trainees in a step-wise on-the-job training process, from needs
assessment to training planning, implementation and evaluation, and has been proved to be effective.
Recently, FFS has been used as a means to transfer knowledge on adaptation in agriculture to farmers.

UN-REDD The United Nations Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation
and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries (UN-REDD) is a collaborative initiative of FAO,
UNDP and UNEP, launched in September 2008. It is basically a sector capacity building programme,
with two overriding objectives, namely assisting developing countries to prepare for participation in a
future REDD mechanism and supporting the development of guidance and standardized approaches
based on sound science. It mainly addresses issues on MRV, stakeholder engagement, multiple
benefits and a strong institutional framework including payment structures.

4. Actions to be taken

For better replicating and upscaling these innovative ways and good practices, some further actions
need to be taken, including those referred to below.

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4.1 Technical preparation

Technical preparation can serve as the first step for replication and upscaling of climate proofing
practices, including:

• identification and summarization of good agricultural practices (GAP) following typological

classification of agro-ecosystems in this region;
• development and dissemination of relevant training modules and extension materials;
• technical and institutional capacity building at regional, national and local levels; and
• research and development of relevant agriculture science and technologies.

4.2 Country programming

Under the framework of the National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA), National Appropriate
Mitigation Actions (NAMA) and National Programme for Food Security (NPFS), a specific action
plan and investment framework on climate change adaptation and mitigation in the agricultural sectors
needs to be formulated. It must then be implemented in a phased manner, based on country-specific
capacities, circumstances and sustainable development processes, starting from a suite of country-led
pilot projects to build readiness, confidence and capacity for further replication.

4.3 Innovative financing

Although the average adaptation cost in Asia and the Pacific region is higher compared with other
regions, many low- or no-cost “win-win” options are available in this region, such as low- or no-tillage
farming and reducing CH4 emissions from paddy rice fields. Currently, agriculture has been largely
excluded from the main climate change financing mechanisms. The limited financing windows that
are available are mainly for mitigation. An innovative financing mechanism is needed that includes
agriculture, rewards synergistic actions, and that addresses the specific needs of smallholder farmers.

4.4 Better governance

Relevant policy and legislative frameworks need to be established to assign responsibilities within the
governance structures. Land tenure and water rights issues need to be better addressed to allow farmers to
make necessary changes in land management and farming practices. To ensure the effectiveness of
mitigation activities, a comprehensive land-use management approach needs to be adopted to minimize
leakage, i.e. displacing emissions between sectors and areas. A proper planning approach and
mainstreaming procedure must be adopted to incorporate agricultural adaptation and mitigation into NAPA
and NAMA, and mainstream them into agriculture and development plans.

4.5 Regional cooperation

It is necessary to strengthen regional cooperation further on a number of issues, such as:

• climate change modeling and projection;

• transboundary water, forestry and marine resources management;
• transboundary crop, plant, and animal diseases control;

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• large-scale disaster and emergency control; and
• biodiversity conservation.

The formulation of a regional strategy and establishment of a regional cooperation network on climate
change adaptation and mitigation in the agricultural sectors may better facilitate coordinated action,
information sharing, policy dialogue, technical cooperation and capacity building within the region.

References and bibliography

1. ADB. 2009. Building climate resilience in the agriculture sector of Asia and the Pacific. Manila.
2. FAO. 2008. Climate change and food security in Pacific island countries. Bangkok.
3. FAO. 2009. FAO profile for climate change, 2009. Rome.
4. FAO. 2009. Feeding the world in 2050. Rome.
5. FAO. 2009. The state of food insecurity in the world. Rome.
6. FAO. 2010. Food security and agricultural mitigation in developing countries: options for
capturing synergies. Rome.
7. IPCC. 2007. Climate change 2007: The physical science basis. Contribution of working group I to
the fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Solomon, S., D.
Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B. Averyt, M. Tignor & H.L. Miller (eds). Cambridge,
United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA, Cambridge University Press.