Climate Change mitigation initiatives ensure food security and job opportunities

“Climate change is real and severely impacts the agricultural sector,” said Ivan Meyer, Western Cape Minister of Agriculture, Economic Development and Tourism, during the debate on the climate crisis in the Western Cape Provincial Parliament on Thursday, 22 August 2024.

The Minister stressed, “Recent experience has taught us that heavy rains, floods, fires, and strong winds have unfortunately become the norm and threaten our exports and jobs.”

Rising temperatures lead to heat stress in crops and livestock. Dairy cows, for example, are susceptible to heat stress. 

Higher temperatures alter growing seasons, accelerate crop maturity, and allow different crops to be grown in some regions. Due to climate change, major commodity crops - like grain and oats - are expected to have lower yields.

Floods have significantly impacted the agriculture sector, causing:

• Erosion of riparian areas, downstream silt deposits, and development of islands within river courses;
• Many hectares of productive agricultural land are being washed away;
• Infrastructure damage to farms;
• Job losses for seasonal farm workers and
• Major crop losses and export reductions lead to market potential loss.

Minister Meyer highlighted that the cost of agricultural damages caused by flooding in 2023 alone is estimated at R6.5 billion.

He said, “Droughts have led to approximately 30,000 job losses and a 13-20% drop in exports due to reduced farming output. Climate change poses challenges but also creates opportunities for agriculture.”

Minister Meyer said adaptation strategies and ongoing research are crucial to mitigate its effects.

The Minister emphasized that the Western Cape Department of Agriculture (WCDoA) has been working hard to accelerate our efforts to create a climate change-resilient agricultural sector.

Initiatives include:

• The Multi-stakeholder Dialogue on Climate Disaster
• The Climate Change and Agriculture Youth Summit was recently held in Oudtshoorn, with another one planned for October 2024.
• The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the provincial Departments of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs, and Development Planning and the Stellenbosch University School for Climate Studies was signed at the end of 2023.
• The formal signing of the Statement of Commitment of the Mediterranean Climate Action Partnership (MCAP) concluded at COP28.

Other measures that the WCDoA is undertaking include initiating crucial ecological infrastructure projects to support rural farming communities in conserving, restoring, and utilizing our natural agricultural resources. These include invasive alien plant removal, river protection works, fence construction, stock-watering system construction, and firebreak creation.

“The Western Cape Government’s Climate Change Mitigation Initiatives support rural farming communities' conservation, restoration, and utilization efforts. They provide resilience against climate change impacts, ensure food security, and create job opportunities for rural, low-skilled, unemployed individuals,” concluded the Minister.